It All Came Tumbling Down
by kl-eternity
Summary: What if one small slip changed everything? What if the fleet missed meeting the Pegasus? Sometimes a small incident can change the course of people's lives. AU from the episode "Home 2" but some material used from all seasons. Kara/Lee
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters they all belong to Ronald D Moore and Universal, I'm just borrowing them

Rating: M

Warnings: Some strong language and possibly in later chapters sex and violence

Characters: Kara/Lee, some Karl/Sharon but the whole cast gets acknowledgement

**Author's note: Ultimately this is an AU fic but I have used material from all seasons. Do not read if you have not watched the end of the series. Reviews are welcome but please be nice this is my first attempt at writing fic.**

***

Prologue

The first thing they saw when they opened their eyes were the white lights blazing down on them from the ceiling. Soft restraints pinned them to their beds. Faint murmurings surrounded them that they could not comprehend. It was also cold, very cold, their nakedness exposing them to the crisp air-conditioned room.

What had started as another monotonous day on a Battlestar had taken a bizarre and rather frakked up turn. They had found the end of their journey, their salvation, but this was not what they had expected or dreamt about. To top it off they had no idea if the rest of the fleet knew where they were and if they would ever find them again.

Their thoughts were all stopped however by the sound of more instruments and murmurings as they drifted off into an induced slumber. The flash of cameras spotting their vision as all faded to black. The sensation of their beds being lowered and moved down a long and even colder corridor was the last thing they felt.

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_Unnamed and Secret Military Base – England, Earth_

Dr Caroline Richards relaxed in her comfy leather swivel chair, pen flopping out of her mouth, glasses perched on the end of her nose and surrounded by 6 bulging files.

"So, got anything on our mystery guests doc?" said Caroline's superior and bane of her life, Lieutenant John Simms. "Worked out which country they were sent to spy from?"

If she didn't already think that he was a complete idiot she would have reminded him that her job was strictly to establish whether or not their "guests" were actually human or not. She didn't give a damn what government or agenda they were working for. Caroline smiled privately to herself, today was the day she had found what she had been dreaming about since she was a kid. Today she finally found proof that there was life out there beyond Earth and they were sleeping in the room next to her.

"You can tell Major Ford that I'm ready to share my findings with him" she answered with the most sincere smile she could muster.

"Fine, have it your way doc" snipped the Lieutenant tossing down a pile of papers. "You may want to read this. It's the protocol on what our next steps should be"

He then gave her a long look up and down her body and abruptly turned and exited the room.

"Fucking idiot" she muttered under her breath, tossed her feet off her desk and threw her pen down on top of the pile of files. She walked over to the long one-way glass and looked at the six figures lying on individual beds. They were all asleep for now, the physical tests were complete the psychometric tests would begin in due course.

"So…are they aliens?" Major Ford asked as he walked quietly up behind her and observed the six figures.

"Short answer?"

"Go for it doc" he placed one hand on her shoulder and looked down at her. She hated it when he did that, his 6'3" frame settled too perfectly into her side, his black hair and soft handsome face close to hers always made her stomach do somersaults. Fuck, why did this guy always have such an affect on her?

She realised that, while she was working out how to get him out of his military uniform in less than 10 seconds, that she hadn't answered his question.

"Yip" she said bluntly. Ford always liked short and to the point answers.

"Alright doc, time to spill what you've got." He took his hand off her shoulder and she missed his touch immediately.

"Personally I'm disappointed" he said with a grin "I always expected aliens to be green with tentacles and to be, alien like. These guys look just like us."

Bringing herself back to reality Caroline giddily grabbed at her files.

"These guys are fucking great! Nothing to disappoint, and you ain't gonna believe what I found about one of them."

Caroline turned on the TV next her, a video link with a conference room full of people flashed on to the screen.

"Hi everybody I'm Dr Richards. As you are aware we had an unknown flying object crash down about 5 miles out of London. Inside were six subjects, two of which were injured on landing. The subjects appear to be human in appearance consisting of three males and three females of varying racial appearance."

Caroline took a sip of her water and then pressed a button which raised the one-way glass. She walked confidently over to the first bed where a brunette female lay. Caroline mused on how pretty the female looked even under an induced sleep and with no trace of make-up on her face. She looked like she was of oriental descent, if she was from Earth that is.

"We've conducted a number of tests on all the subjects. All of them appeared to be human just like us and in respect of five of them their vitals and blood samples show that is exactly what they are."

"Five of them?" Caroline noticed that the idiot Simms had returned.

"Yes five of them are, for all intents and purposes human, with a few subtle differences."

"Such _as_…?" Simms said whilst gesturing with his arms.

Caroline gave a little cough and continued. "When I tested their blood we couldn't identify their blood type. It's different from ours, similar but ultimately different."

"Dangerously different?" asked one of the people watching via the video link

"Not as far as I could tell. More different in respect of different genes, evolutionary differences. Two of the subjects have what I would classify as category D blood, however the other three have traits of category A blood mixed with what I would classify as category E blood."

Murmurs spread throughout the room. Caroline noticed that at least ten more men in uniforms had come into the room and were listening intently to what she was saying. The enormity of what she was telling them about the five subjects hit her; this was their first contact with people from another world. But that was nothing compared to what she was about to tell them next.

"Okay.." she said and then took a deep breath. "This sixth subject is what interests me the most. When we did tests on her blood we couldn't identify her blood. After extensive testing we found the reason why, her blood is synthetic."

"She has _fake _blood?" Ford blurted out.

"Yes, further extensive testing proved to show that she is completely synthetic, not human. She's alive in the way that she breathes, has a heart that beats and a brain. But she was created not born."

"You mean she's a fucking robot?" Simms said as he took a few steps backwards.

"I mean she's an artificial being. She has brain functions, emotions and individuality and could perfectly pass herself off as another human being. Even more interesting is that she is capable of procreation, her physical exam shows that at some point she has given birth to a child."

"_What?" _said a number of people all at once.

"Is it dangerous?" asked Ford.

"During some of _her_ conscious moments she broke through the restraints. Fortunately we were able to knock her out before she did any damage. I suggest that she be kept under close watch"

"Have her taken to a secure cell under constant guard. No-one is to see her or talk to her without my prior approval" demanded Ford.

Three guards with guns appeared and pushed the robot's stretcher out of the room and then disappeared again.

Caroline bowed her head, she didn't want any of her guests being hurt, but something about that woman unnerved her. She had seen the movies and what usually happened when man met robot, it never turned out good for the humans. Caroline wondered what had brought her guests to Earth and what their purpose was. A small shiver went down her spine and then she remembered whose company she was in so continued her report.

"I believe that all our guests are members of some sort of military."

"On what do you base _that _assumption?" snipped Simms.

"Well they seem to be in some sort of uniform, two of whom seem to be in space suits. They also seem to be wearing some sort of insignia on their uniforms."

"For fuck sake doc that may be what they all wear on their planet" said Simms as he flopped himself into Caroline's comfy chair.

Caroline decided it would be best just to ignore him and carry on "in my _personal _opinion" well maybe she would rise to him a little "they're military. Each of them was also wearing one of these."

Caroline grabbed a metal chain with a tag on the end from her desk and held it out to the room.

"Dogtags?" Ford asked

"That's what I'm thinking. This one belongs to the artificial woman, _S. A g a t h o n." _Caroline said as she wrote out the symbols on a large board_._

"What is interesting is that they use similar lettering as we do" Caroline added as she walked over to the nearest bed.

"This female is white with brunette hair, approximately 25-35 years old. Her tags name her as _M. E d m o n d s o n_. She was wearing a spacesuit when she crashed landed here. I believe she was one of the pilots as her name is painted on the side of the vessel. She appears to be fit and health. Her spacesuit had a patch on the side with a picture of their vessel and the word _r a p t o r s_ underneath. On the other side is another patch with an emblem and the following letters _b a t t l e s t a r g a l a c t i c a._"

Caroline had no idea what any of the letterings meant, it was double Dutch to her. She didn't even know how to begin to formulate the letters into a word.

"Okay, this next subject is a black male again about 25-35 years in age with the name _H. M c C a l l_ on his tags. His name was also on the vessel and he was wearing a spacesuit at the time of the crash. He had an injury to his leg from the crash but it should heal in time. This second male is white with brown hair and a _very _athletic build, about 25-35 years old. His tags name him as _K. A g a t h o n_."

"Like the robot?" interrupted Simms.

Caroline rolled her eyes "yes like the robot's name, perhaps they're married. This male has an old scar on his leg akin to a bullet wound. He also received some abrasions from the crash."

Caroline moved between the last two beds and looked thoughtfully at her last two guests. Apart from the artificial woman these two interested her the most. There was something significant about them.

"These last two subjects are interesting. I cannot fully determine their names."

"How come?" Ford asked intrigued.

"Well they are wearing each other's dogtags as well as their own and they also have a ring attached the tags. Their names are _L. A d a m a_ and _K. T h r a c e_ but I don't know which is which. They're both between 25-35 years old. The male is white and has brown hair and is also of _very _athletic build."

_I want to have your babies_ _type build_ Caroline thought, but kept those thoughts to herself.

"The female is blonde, a natural blonde" she added quickly before Simms could interrupt. "They both show signs of being through a rough time, with numerous battle scars. The male has a scar on the right side of his chest, which looks like an old bullet wound. He also has scars that remind me of injuries inflicted on prisoners of war."

"He was tortured?" Ford asked as he got up from his perch and walked towards the beds.

"So it seems was the woman, but she also has additional wounds. She has a scar, which looks like an old bullet wound on the lower left side of her abdomen above another surgical looking scar. Not sure what that scar was from though. She has another scar along the middle of her lower abdomen, a caesarean scar. Her physical exam showed that she has also given birth at some point."

"So she's a battle wounded, tortured, mother of two, soldier?" asked Ford.

"Pretty much."

"You know they have chat shows for this kind of person?"

Caroline gave Ford a long gaze, perhaps a bit too long and turned back to the beds.

"What is really interesting about this woman is what came up in her x-rays. She's got old fractures along her fingers, the same point on each finger on each hand."

"What are you saying doc?" Ford asked looking concerned, he wasn't sure he wanted to know the answer.

"I'm saying that, regardless of how technologically advanced these people seem to be, they still have victims of child abuse. These sorts of fractures are usually sustained by slamming children's hands in door frames."

"Shit" was all Ford could think of to say.

The rest of the report consisted of informing the "suits" on her theories as to what their guests were here for, where they had come from and how they had got here. Six long hours later Caroline finally got her office back to herself. Her "guests" had been placed in their own individual rooms in order to prepare them for the next set of tests. Caroline sat at her desk and relaxed while she looked at their pictures. She found herself not caring about why they were here and what their intentions were. In her gut she knew they were not here to hurt anybody. What she saw in them was sadness, something had happened to them. They had obviously been through a lot but what and why?

She looked at a photograph that they had found in the vessel about an hour ago. It contained an image of the blonde female and the male who shared her dogtags. They were smiling and looking happy, dressed in spacesuits and in front of a vessel which looked like a fighter jet. They each had a child in their arms. The children looked to be about one year in age with light brown curly hair and bright blue eyes. Caroline thought that they were the spitting image of their dad, who was holding the girl. The girl seemed more interested in her dad's dogtags then in smiling for the camera. The boy in the blonde's arms, in contrast, had a huge grin which mirrored his mother.

"Well that solves the question of her scar and signs of giving birth," thought Caroline "twins."

What struck Caroline most about the photograph, however, was the eeriness it instilled in her. The happy family in front of a obviously battle worn and scorched fighter jet. The question is who or what were they fighting and what events had transpired to bring them here to her...?

**AN: I've done a bit of re-editing since I originally posted this chapter**


	2. How she came tumbling down

Chapter One

_Kobol – 3 years earlier_

The rain beat down on them continuously as they scaled the seemingly endless hillside in their desperate search for the tomb of Athena. The journey was sombre, still in shock from the death of Elosha.

Kara felt herself struggling, not that she would admit it, her bullet wound burning and sending stabbing pains through her body every time she took a step or a deep breath. She grimaced, gripping her side and continued to try and keep her footing on some unstable rocks. Hundreds of thoughts were going through her head, what had happened to her in that farm, what that second scar was, how the frak would she get back to Caprica to get Sam, did Lee really say that he loves her? The last thought occupied her mind the most which was infuriating her, she should be thinking more about the man she left behind. But no she had to be trekking up what could only be described as a mountain in the pouring rain and analysing over and over again what Lee had said.

"Frakking brain" she muttered under her breath. So what if he had said that, it didn't mean anything, he thinks of you as a friend nothing more. But what if he does think of her more and she misses the opportunity? It was at the point when Kara was about to shout at her brain again that she managed to find a loose rock on the hill. Before she had the time to say "frak" her still bad knee gave way from underneath her. She scrambled to keep her footing but she just kept going, tumbling through the wet trees.

*********************************************************************

"Why did he tell her he loves her" kept going around Lee's head "you've probably scared her away for good now. She'll run and keep running."

Lee always had had bad timing ever since he was born. Conceived at the wrong time. Asking out Maria when he was twelve, two days after she found out she moving to Picon. His moment of near passion with Kara on her dinner table just as Zak woke up. Nope his thoughts would not go _there_. He had sworn to himself never to bring up that moment again. But she had looked so beautiful that night as he leaned over her after she had bared her soul to him. For the following months they had barely been apart from each other and Zak, but he never got to see that sparkle in her eyes which was meant only for him he was sure. On Colonial Day he saw that look in her eyes again and like a stupid fool he had blown it by walking away and letting Gaius frakking Baltar step in. Lee couldn't help but wonder how different things would be if he had held on to her for dear life.

And then she had run away after he failed to hide his jealousy, pushed her away yet again. "Lee Adama you are a frakking idiot sometimes" he thought as he saw Roslin begin to stumble over her book of Pythia. Lee shook his head free from his thoughts of Kara and moved to help Roslin. He hadn't moved far when he heard the small yelp and resounding crash that came from behind him.

Kara was falling, falling fast over the rocks and between the trees.

"Kara!" Lee shouted, concern etching his voice, forgetting all about the centurions that could be within ear shot. He saw the flash of blond, smacking her side into a rock and come to an abrupt halt.

"Frak" Lee started skidding down the hill, Helo hot on his heels. He didn't care how much damage he was probably doing to himself, he had to reach her and quick.

*********************************************************************

The pain slammed through her body like she had been hit by a truck, her vision blurred but finally she had stopped falling. Above the pain she was vaguely aware of the figure sliding down the hill towards her position.

"Lee" she groaned, her words barely able to come out, the pain crippling her.

She wasn't moving. Panic ran though Lee's body. Why isn't she moving she didn't fall that far, not enough to completely incapacitate her but something was seriously wrong. When he reached her he saw that she was partially awake.

"Kara? Kara can you hear me?"

"Lee?" she groaned out again. She reached out for her side. The pain gripped her like a vice and she let out a deep piercing scream of pain.

"Where are you hurt?" he asked.

Kara gestured to her side. Lee gently placed his hand on Kara's head.

"Do you think anything is broken?" he asked gently. Kara shook her head, her eyes trying to focus on his face.

"We should get her off this frakking mountain asap," Helo said. Lee wasn't sure when Helo had caught up with him and he didn't care "she needs to get out of the rain and keep warm" he added.

"Can you stand?" Lee asked, stroking a hand through her hair. With a determined look on her face Kara started to push herself up. The shot of pain and accompanying yell made her have other ideas.

"Here, give her this" Helo passed over a syringe from his backpack, "some painkillers."

Lee removed the tip of the syringe and gave it a small shake, "sorry bout this" he said as he injected the syringe into the side of her neck. Kara gave a small wince as the needle went in then her face calmed. Lee kept stroking her hair as she phased out into semi-consciousness then complete unconsciousness. Lee placed one arm under her neck and scooped up her legs lifting her into the air.

"You know if she was conscious she would kill you for having to carry her like that" Helo joked, trying to lighten the mood.

"Once in a life time opportunity, I should be honoured." Lee looked up the hill and grimaced "frak"

"We'll take turns" Helo said, patting Lee on the shoulder and starting the trek up the hillside.

Lee didn't know Helo that well, this was third time he had ever met him. Again his meetings with this guy always seemed to be plagued by bad timing. The first time they had met was when Helo came to bail Kara out of a police station in Caprica City. He had ended up having to bail Lee out as well after his girlfriend had refused to come within one mile of him. Apparently drinking with another woman all night and getting into a bar fight did not go down too well with Sherry. They had had breakfast together, Lee looking on as Kara and Helo chatted away about their academy days. The second time they met was on Galactica at the de-commissioning ceremony. They had nodded acknowledgement but then all went to hell and Helo had "died." Their third meeting Lee had tried to shoot Helo's pregnant girlfriend. Definitely not the best start for two men with a mutual best friend who was now depending on them both. Despite Helo's taste in girlfriends though, he was a good guy and obviously cared about Kara.

Lee started the hike up the hillside. Helo took hold of the arrow and slung it over his back, jogging to catch up with Sharon. Lee stepped carefully not wanting to hurt Kara.

"Will she be okay?" Roslin said as she walked in step with Lee.

"I think so; we'll stop and examine her closer at the top of the hill. I think she may have fractured a rib." Lee looked down at Kara thoughtfully, she was asleep now and looked peaceful.

"You care about her a lot don't you?" Roslin asked with a sweet smile

"Yeah, I've known her for years now," he smiled, "she was engaged to my brother"

"Hmm? I don't think that's the only reason you care for her" Lee looked up at Roslin his eyebrow raised. "Trust me I've never seen two "friends" or "family members" greet each other the way you two did on the Astral Queen" she gave a little smirk.

"It's not what you think"

"Maybe not yet, but it should. In my experience just sitting on your feelings gets you nowhere. All that leads to is heartbreak when one of you finally decides to move on" Roslin pressed on ahead of Lee with a little more vigour in her steps. She left Lee standing gobsmacked, Kara still gently held in his arms.

If only it was that easy he thought. It wasn't easy to tell someone how you feel when you have no idea what it is exactly that you feel. But he knew one thing he couldn't bear the thought of her being with someone else.

*********************************************************************

Their trek to the top of the hill was a perilous one. With Kara now settled in Helo's arms they began to set up camp. Helo placed Kara on the most comfortable bedding they had. He then went to work putting up the shelter around her as Lee went to her side.

Lee just watched her sleep, the look of peace on her face. He was concerned. She looked tired and drawn out when she first arrived on the Astral Queen. She also seemed _off. _Something had happened to her on Caprica and whatever it was it wasn't good. He stroked his hand through the blood smear staining her blond hair. Whatever happened _definitely _wasn't good.

Kara stirred, her eyes fluttering open "Lee?" she said weakly

"Hey" he said with a smile. He stroked her hair again.

"Frak how long was I out?" Kara made to get up

"Hey just take it easy, you were out for about 3 hours, just lie back"

"Not likely" she sat up and soon regretted it as pain shot through her side "frak."

"You've probably busted a few ribs so take it easy, or do I have to make that an order lieutenant?"

"It's not my ribs" Kara unzipped her sweater and looked down at the dressing on her side. Fresh blood has seeped through the dressing, "frak, I busted my stitches."

"What the hell? What happened Kara?" concern was written all across Lee's face.

"I was shot" she pulled away the dressing gently, ignoring the look of shock on Lee's face, wincing as it came free

Lee grimaced "I bet that smarts" he gently placed his hands on her side "yep you pulled some stitches, I'll re-dress it and the doc can have a look when we get back to Galactica." Lee grabbed the medical kit and produced a fresh dressing. "Um Kara what's the second scar?"

Kara looked away, a look of sadness haunting her eyes "I told you, I was shot"

"That's a surgical looking scar Kara. So what is it?"

"Its frakking nothing Lee, okay?" Kara shouted quickly zipping up her sweater and turning her head away again.

Lee didn't know how to respond to her outburst. He remembered what Roslin had said to him and said calmly "I care about you Kara, all I want to do is help. If that scar is something that could get worse or harm you I need to know so I can treat it."

Kara looked at the concern etched on Lee's face, those damn baby blue eyes that she always had difficulty in resisting. "I don't know what it is Lee" she said in a small voice, a tear she couldn't stop flowed down her cheek. Lee looked deeply concerned now and stroked a hand through her hair again. He was really at a loss for words. He had seen many sides to his best friend but he had never seen her look so scared. He wiped away the tear and took her hand in his.

"The cylons took me Lee" she said finally, another tear escaping, "frak" she said as she wiped it away. Lee gripped her hand tighter

"It's okay"

"I woke up in a hospital bed after I was shot. I don't know how long I was there, only that every time I woke up an apparent doctor would show up and knock me out again. One time after he…" she stopped suddenly

"Kara?"

"After he did a physical exam of me" she said gesturing towards her legs "I woke up with this scar. I heard them Lee" she choked "I heard them say they had taken something from me" she couldn't stop it any longer. Her face screwed up and the tears kept coming. She hated being so weak especially in front of him.

"Oh gods Kara" he leaned down to her and took her in his arms gently. He never wanted to let her go again. He wanted to take the pain away. But he didn't need to say anything he just needed to hold her.

They stayed that way, embracing, for at least 20 minutes.

Kara was the one who backed away. "Sorry" she said wiping away the remaining tears.

"Don't be, I care about you remember?"

"You love me" Lee looked up at her the shock evident in his eyes "no take backs remember?" she teased. Lee smiled despite himself and gently placed the new dressing on Kara's abdomen. He gently taped the dressing up then looked away.

"Hey" she reached her arm out for him. She was the one who looked concerned now

Lee looked back at her, trying to avoid her eyes. This was it, if he was going to do this it had to be now. Roslin's words had been playing through his head continuously, he didn't know what it was he felt for Kara, but he had to let her know that how much he cares for her and that he would always be there for her. He raised his eyes to hers.

"Kara I" his words faltered as he saw her dogtags. One of them was missing. He reached out and took them in his hand. "Where's your second tag?" he didn't really want to know the answer.

Her eyes went wide "Oh, I um." Frak why was it so difficult to say who she had met on Caprica, it was only Lee she was talking to, her best friend. Why did it matter? Kara licked her full lips and her eyes met his "I ah kinda met someone. I gave the tag as a promise. A promise to go back for him" she had said it, but the pain gripped her heart at the broken look in Lee's eyes. He looked away unable to meet her gaze any longer.

"Lee I" she began

"You don't have to explain Kara" he gently zipped up her sweater and turned away. The pain shot through him. He took a quick look back at her and he knew. He had remembered in his dreams every curve of her face, her luscious lips that formed into the most beautiful of smiles, and her eyes that always seemed to be able to pierce right through to his soul every time. He did love her. He always had, right from that moment when she opened the door to her apartment, her smile lighting up the whole corridor. Then the shocking reality hit him.

He was in love with her and he had lost her.


	3. Reunion

Chapter Two

He had lost her.

He had lost her because he was a frakking idiot and pushed her away. Lee stared out into the night. He didn't know how long he had just been sitting under a tree in front of a fire, the cold dank air surrounding him.

He had lost her because some other lucky frak hadn't been a coward and had given her the love which she deserves. Lee threw a stick into the fire a tear streaking down his cheek. "frak I'm an idiot" he said under his breath. In his mind it was a useless situation, she didn't feel the same way and she had fallen for someone else. What did he expect? He hadn't made a move, frak he didn't even know before now how he felt in order to make a move. So of course she did what any other woman would do, meet a guy and fall in love.

So what could he do? Nothing he decided, he would do nothing. He would be what she wanted, be her best friend.

"Frak this" he said to himself and walked back to her tent.

She was still awake, looking away from the entrance to the tent her arm flopped across her abdomen. She looked pensive. How many cubits would he pay to know what was going on in her head.

"Hey" he said sitting by her side

She turned her head suddenly "hey" she sounded surprised to see him back, like she didn't expect him to ever talk to her again. She smiled.

"How are you feeling?"

"A lot better"

There was a deathly silence. Kara felt like she had to explain something to Lee.

"Caprica was a really frakked up place Lee, but we found survivors, resistance fighters." She tried to sound as enthusiastic as possible

"I guess the guy who has your tag was one of them"

Kara blushed, "yeah, the leader and captain of the Caprica buccaneers"

Lee took a few moments to remember who was in the C-Bucs team "_Anders? _Frak Kara when you bring back a boyfriend you don't mess around."

They both laughed, the tension in the room lessening.

"You know me" she said with a smile. After a few moments she added "There were too many of them to bring back with us so I promised I'd go back, so I gave him my tag. It's not like we're engaged at all it was just a promise." She felt like she needed to explain that, she didn't know why, but the look on Lee's face when he had noticed her missing tag had cracked open her heart. The heart that she swore would be permanently closed when Zak died.

"You should go back"

The shock registered on her face, "you think I should go back?"

"From what I can see there are few things to hold on to in life since the worlds ended, but life is definitely one of them and Kara if he is out there and still breathing then you should go back for him. No more living with regret. You deserve some happiness."

Kara didn't know what to say to that. Did she really deserve happiness? She had killed Zak. She may not have been the one who blew up his viper but as far as she was concerned she was just as responsible. If it wasn't for her he would not have been in that viper and he would not have crashed into that hard deck.

And was Anders the one to make her happy? Sure he was a nice guy, frakking good on the eyes and a hero but was he what she wanted? To be truthful she didn't know what she wanted.

"You really think I should back?" She said finally looking into his eyes

"Yeah I really do. Before you have to live with the regret of leaving him behind"

Lee left Kara dumfounded as he got her a cup of something warm, which resembled coffee. He couldn't remember what real coffee actually tasted like.

"Thanks" she sat up and took the drink masquerading as coffee, sipping at the cup.

After a few minutes Kara decided to speak up "I went back to my old apartment."

"Still in the frakked up state you left it in?"

"Yep" Kara took another sip of the coffee "after Zak, cleaning didn't seem that important anymore"

"That and general hygiene" Lee teased

"Frak you" she smiled and took another sip. They both laughed quietly, the warm memories of Zak flooding through them both. The pain that had been gripping Kara's mind since the hospital on Caprica seemed to have lifted a little. Just talking about it had alleviated the weight off her mind. She would be okay because Lee was here with her.

"The cylons were taking women, putting them in farms" she said finally

"Farms?"

"Baby making facilities, trying to breed baby toasters. It was frakked up Lee, the women were hooked up to these machines, dying."

Lee squeezed her hand. "We'll go back and frakking blow them all up okay?"

"We'll?"

"You don't think I'd let you go alone did you?" he smiled at her. Kara smiled back. he really did care about her. She didn't know why she was so lucky to have such a man care as much about her as Lee Adama did.

"Get some sleep okay? I really don't want to have to carry you tomorrow."

"I'm never going to live that down am I?"

"Never" he smiled throwing a blanket over her. He leaned down and placed a soft kiss to the top of her head. "Night Kara"

*********************************************************************

The next day the group carried on their journey to the tomb of Athena, fortunately on much more level ground and without the rain. Kara managed to walk the whole day as her side felt a lot better.

Despite her side feeling better, however, the walk drained all of her energy. Lee kept guard by Kara's side that night as she slept soundly, knocked out from more pain meds. If any cylons came he would be ready, but nothing stirred, just Zarek's right hand man, Meier wandering around who Lee didn't trust.

Lee fell into a light slumber around 3 am, still aware of anything or anyone coming within a few meters of Kara. In the morning he was awoken suddenly when he became aware of a quiet rustling from the bushes. Grabbing his gun he walked through the campsite. He peered around the side of one of the tents his gun raised. He was stopped in his tracks by the figure that stood before him.

Shock registered Lee's face as he saw his newly recovered dad standing with his gun also raised. Lee didn't know what to say and he couldn't move.

"Put down your weapon, Captain"

They both finally lowered their guns together but still neither spoke. Lee had expected his dad to give him hell for what he had done, to put him under immediate arrest. However Adama walked forward and grabbed Lee into a tight embrace. Lee hugged his father back relief washing through him.

Tears were pooled in the commander's eyes as he turned to the approaching Roslin.

"Commander" Roslin said smiling

"It's good to see you"

Another voice came from behind Adama. "Madam President?"

Billy emerged from behind Adama a look of apprehension on his face. Roslin was so happy to see them, all of them, especially Billy. She had missed Billy so much but she understood why he had stayed behind. She only hoped that Billy had forgiven her for having to leave.

"Billy. Billy, you have no idea what it means to me to have you here."

"It's good to see you too."

The beauty of the reunion, however, was interrupted by Tyrol shouting out and raising his gun "Oh, my gods. Commander? Commander!" Adama stopped his second embrace of Lee and saw the cylon walking through the camp.

"She's with us, Commander" said Helo

Helo's apparent return after being declared dead didn't register with Adama at all as he focused intently on the Sharon model. Memories of her firing 4 rounds into his chest, her death and asking her "why" flashed through his head. He instinctively reached out and grabbed her throat and threw her down. He wanted to strangle the life out of her, to make her pay for what she had done. He was oblivious to shouts of everyone around him until the pain stabbed through his chest.

"And you ask why?" Sharon breathed into his ear as he collapsed on top of her.

Adama felt Lee's arms embracing him, pain and sadness etched over his face. Helo took Sharon away to the other side of the camp.

"Dad? Are you okay" Lee asked concerned, but Adama did not respond. They just sat there in the undergrowth embracing.

Eventually Adama responded, his voice gravely "Where the frak did that thing come from Lee?"

"She came back from Caprica with Helo and Starbuck"

"Starbuck? Where is she?" Adama made to get up gazing across the campsite.

"She's sleeping, she was hurt after taking a fall down a hill yesterday"

"That doesn't sound like our Starbuck"

"She, she was already hurt dad. She was shot on Caprica, the fall aggravated it."

"Take me to her, now"

Lee guided Adama to where Kara was still sleeping, completely unaware of all the drama that had unfolded within a few metres of her. A look of sadness washed over Adama as he knelt down beside her. He pushed a strand of hair behind her ear and stroked her face.

Kara stirred "Sir?"

"Hello Starbuck, what'd ya hear?" he smiled

She pulled her trademark smile "nothing but the rain sir"

"Then grab your gun and bring in the cat" she sat up slowly and they embraced.

"I'm sorry" she said, tears in her eyes

"Me too" Adama's said slowly "me too."

*********************************************************************

They spent the rest of the day continuing their walk to the tomb. Kara walked with Lee and Adama. Filling in Kara on what had happened while she was away

"You mean to tell me that you blew up a centurion as it was doing a flying jump on top of you?" Kara asked incredulously "nah I don't believe it" she mocked

"_You_ would have probably tried to take it out with that right hook of yours" laughed Lee

Kara laughed out loud and smacked him gently on the back. "Well, I did have a fist fight with some bleached blonde cylon bitch"

"Did you win?"

"Sort of" Kara had to admit that she had had her ass handed to her on a plate by the cylon "but you know my out of the box thinking." She grinned at the curious look on Lee's face "I rammed into her throwing us both off a second storey ledge, damn bitch might not have any meat on her but she sure made for a soft landing."

Lee couldn't help but laugh as Kara pulled her trademark grin. Even Adama was smirking.

Kara saw the smile on Adama's face and went sombre "I can't believe cylons got on to Galactica. I should have been there"

"You can't have known what was going to happen Kara" said Lee "besides, you found survivors on Caprica"

"Oh. Yeah" she couldn't believe with everything that was happening that she had forgotten about Sam and the others.

That thought was still plaguing her mind as they settled into their new camp that night. She sat in front of the fire next to Lee and Billy just staring into the flames. What was she doing? Back on Colonial day she had known what she wanted and that was to share her bunk with Lee that night. Frak him until that smirk was wiped off his face. She had worn that dress for him, even worn frakking make-up but then he had still let Baltar take over. Then he went crazy at her when she shared a bed with him instead. She shuddered a bit at the memory of Baltar's hands all over her. His whispers into her ear asking he to follow him back to Galactica for some of his secret stash of Caprica's best ambrosia. It was all a blur after the drinking started until the point where she screamed out "Lee" as her body convulsed in orgasm. If only it _was_ him between her thighs.

"Frak" she muttered. She was doing it again, thinking of him. What she should be thinking about is the guy waiting for her to return, who held her dogtag and had saved her from the cylons. But then there was Lee who had carried her up a frakking mountain, watched over her when she slept and who had listened without judgement when she had told him about the farm. He had even told her that he would help her go back for Sam. "I don't deserve either of them" she thought "I don't deserve anybody"

"Cubit for you thoughts?" Lee's voice broke through her reverie

"Huh?"

"You okay?"

"Yeah" she said throwing some grass into the flames "never better"

"Okay… need any more pain meds?"

"Nope" throwing some more blades into the flames. Lee sighed, he was losing her again.

"Look Kara you don't have to tell me anything you don't want to, but I'm here if you want me." He stood up and began to walk over to one of the tents. "I love you remember" he teased himself.

Kara could not help but smile. He always had a way of pulling her back from the abyss of her thoughts. She followed him to the tent. Lee smiled as she settled in the makeshift bed next to him.

"Night Kara" he said with a mockingly sweet voice

"Frak off Lee"

Lee laughed and rolled over settling into a restless slumber. They had a long day ahead of them tomorrow.


	4. Home

**AN:- A big thankyou to everyone who has reviewed my story! I am so glad you are enjoying it so far. Another big thank you to Jei for being my very patient beta, you rock!**

Chapter Three

They had a map to Earth

It was amazing. They had stood on Earth and looked up at their lost homes. They had a direction now, the Lagoon Nebula and from there their new home was waiting.

It hadn't all gone exactly to plan, Zarek's goon Meier had decided to take the situation into his own hands. Sharon soon dissolved that problem; maybe Adama would begin to trust her after all. It had also taken Kara ages to work out how to open the tomb. Typically all it needed was some brute strength.

*********************************************************************

Lee and Kara now stood next to each other as Adama spoke to the crew. They were finally back on board Galactica, back home. Back into their uniforms which they thought they would never be allowed to wear again.

Frak! It felt good

Lee and Adama had had to literally force Kara into going to lifestation as soon as they landed. She had given them a resolute look and said "no frakking way, I've had enough of docs." In the end it had taken a firm order and the threat of a marine escort to get her to go. The doc had been his usual charming self.

*********************************************************************

"_What the frak have you done to yourself?" he said, angrily "get into a fist fight with a toaster?"_

"_Well as it goes…" Kara began before Cottle abruptly interrupted her_

"_I've only just recovered from bandaging you up the last time"_

"_I was shot doc" _

_Doc Cottle grumbled and muttered to himself as he examined Kara's wounds thoroughly, despite her objections._

"_You ever plan on telling me what that second scar is? Because it sure isn't a frakking bullet wound" Cottle said with his cigarette still hanging out of his mouth._

"_I thought you were supposed to be the doc" Kara said bluntly _

_Cottle cursed under his breath again as he took a sheet of paper from the nurse Ishay._

"_Well your blood work is normal."_

"_Great" muttered Kara _

"_I want to perform an internal examination on that second scar lieutenant."_

"_Well I don't want an internal examination doc. I want to get the frak out of here" she endeavoured to get up off of the bed._

"_I don't want to have to order restraints, but I will if necessary" _

_Kara seemed to surrender to the Cottle's words whispering "frakking doctors" as she lied back onto the bed._

_Cottle lifted Kara's tanks and pressed the ultrasound equipment to her stomach. She gasped slightly as the cold gel hit her stomach. After a couple of minutes Cottle merely grunted and lit another cigarette._

"_Well…" said Kara impatiently_

"_Thought you didn't give a frak?" Kara rolled her eyes. She really couldn't bear to stay in lifestation a minute longer. She attempted to get up again and make her escape._

"_Everything seems normal" Cottle said reassuringly "Whatever they did caused no permanent damage"_

"_Is…is everything where it should be?" she said in a small voice. Cottle seemed to give her a knowing look, like he understood exactly what she was asking_

"_Everything is normal" he said gently, taking a long drag on his cigarette "Frak knows what all that exposure to radiation did to you though" he added with more vigour._

"_So what did they do to me? They, they said something about the removal of, of my ovaries"_

"_You still have two fully functioning ovaries lieutenant. I can't tell if there was a biopsy though, which is possible."_

_Kara merely nodded. Well at least they hadn't completed what they were going to do. Kara felt a wave of satisfaction flow over her as she remembered plunging the glass into the neck of the cylon. She loved that they could bleed and feel pain. _

_Kara walked out of the lifestation with more of a bounce in her step and made her way to the head, she badly needed a shower before heading down to the hangar deck._

*********************************************************************

And here Kara and Lee were now, listening to their Commander. The fleet reunited. Even though everything was still in hell there seemed to be hope. It was the happiest that they had felt since the end of the worlds.

"We have struggled since the attacks…" Adama began

"They sure had" Kara thought. They had not even had enough time to grieve who and what they had left behind. None of that mattered now. What did matter was their survival - Staying alive.

"…Our strength and our only hope as a people, is to remain undivided…"

"Undivided?" Kara had never really had a side anyway. Sure she hated the frakking cylons but also she had just rescued one. Kara had also never felt particularly "patriotic" to a particular colony. She had moved around far too much for that, ever since she was a baby.

"…We haven't always done all we could to insure that…"

Kara was unique in the way she did not mourn the loss of her old life. There were no family members to mourn, her mother had died a few years before the attacks and her father had left so long ago she barely remembered what he looked like. There was nothing to miss and so there was nothing to try and get back. In her mind, Kara's gains, her family had come at the end of the worlds. It had brought Lee back to her.

When Zak had died she had lost two people in her life. Her guilt had eaten her alive to the point where she couldn't look into Lee's eyes anymore. Kara remembered often the last time she had seen Lee before the worlds had ended after telling him she was leaving for Galactica the next morning. The lost look in his eyes as he walked out of her apartment haunted her. How she felt his presence sitting the other side of her apartment door as she sunk to the floor leaning her head against it.

"…Many people believe that the scriptures, the letters from the gods, will lead us to salvation…"

Kara had always believed in the gods and the scriptures. It wasn't something her mother had forced on her. She had _chosen_ to believe. It had given her hope during her darkest times. Whenever her mother had locked her in the pitch black closet Kara had prayed to the gods. She had felt their strength flowing through her telling her it was going to be okay.

"…Maybe they will. But the gods shall lift those who lift each other."

Adama then welcomed Roslin back with thunderous applause. Even Kara felt the emotion flow through her as everyone clapped and cheered. She was home.

*********************************************************************

Kara had considered Galactica her home since she had arrived two years ago. It was the only time when she felt she completely _belonged._ That didn't stop the uneasy feeling in her stomach, however, as she walked down the corridors to reclaim her bunk. Numerous eyes seemed to follow her and Lee as if they were strangers.

Luckily Adama had decided not to throw her and Lee straight into the brig and had reinstated them straight back into their original roles. CAG and Flight Instructor. Kara would be back in her viper at last, her knee finally given the all clear. Cottle had grounded her for a week for her abdomen to heal and then the skies were hers.

The bunk room looked just the way they had left it, their individual bunks empty and pristine.

Kara sighed "never thought I would be so happy to see this room"

Lee leaned against the hatch "I know what you mean, it's weird"

"I think I'm just glad I'm not looking at the walls of a make-shift hospital or the brig" Kara flumped herself down on her bunk stretching out.

"It feels like we haven't been here in a life time" Lee also threw himself down onto his bunk, his arm flopped over his eyes

After a couple of minutes Kara sat back up and went to her locker "I tell you something I really do need." She started searching around her locker, which quickly turned into her chucking everything out of her locker. "Those frakkers!" she growled

"What is it Kara?" Lee groaned.

"My stogie stash, they've stolen my stogie stash!" Kara gave the door of her locker a smack "and my shampoo"

Lee still had his arm flopped over his eyes like the lights were hurting him "look in my locker, taped to the top is a bag." Kara went to his locker and ripped the bag out and peeked inside.

"You've been holding out on me Adama" she upended the contents of the bag onto the centre table. Stogies, shampoo, soap, energy bars, some small trinkets and even a box of tampons fell out of the bag. "What the frak, Lee?" she said holding up the box "something your not telling me?"

Lee lifted his arm and sat up, he laughed at the expression on Kara's face "my bribery and triad betting bag"

"You're full of surprises you know that?"

"I don't like to disappoint" he teased "besides I'm the one with all of the goodies and yours have all been taken by the greedy nuggets."

"I'm going to kill them"

"Have a stogie first" Lee said standing up. He gathered all his goodies back into the bag and re-taped it to the top of his locker. He flopped back down on his bunk this time with his arm above his head staring at the roof of his bunk. His gazed at his other secret, a picture he had taped to the roof, hidden behind the curtain. The picture had been taken about a week after the one taped in Kara's locker. He was lounging under a tree with Kara and Zak lying together next to him. That had been such a wonderful day.

"Hey, you want one?" Lee's thoughts were interrupted by a stogie hitting his head. Kara was flopped into her bunk on her back, smoking away. She looked content.

Lee didn't smoke often but today he felt like indulging Kara. He lit the stogie and laid back in his bunk smoking away reminiscing again about that day under the tree.

*********************************************************************

_Zak had decided to go away with a group of his friends into the Caprican country-side for his week off from the Academy. He had rented a cabin in the woods and had practically begged Kara to join him. After a lot of persistent persuasion Kara had managed to persuade her superior, Major Hiller to let her also take the time off. Privately she hadn't been keen on the idea of being stuck with Zak's giggly group of friends so she had begged Lee to tag along. Lee had initially declined but finally relented to Kara's constant nagging of "come on tight ass it'll be fun."_

_The cabin was up in the hills two hundred miles out of Delphi. They spent most of their time just relaxing in the garden under the shade of a large willow tree. The heat was oppressive like most Caprican summers with daily thunder storms passing over. _

_About half way through the vacation Lee had found himself lying on his back under the tree resting with a pyramid ball on his chest. His arm flopped over his eyes to shield him from the sun. Zak was opposite him asleep on his back with Kara slumped over him. _

_After a while Lee removed his arm from his face and sat up. He felt a pang of jealousy when he looked at how relaxed and happy Kara seemed to be in Zak's arms. In the back of Lee's mind he had secretly hoped that their relationship would dwindle. He hadn't expected anything less after the "incident" in Kara's apartment, but they had seemed to go from strength to strength. From what Lee had learnt about Kara in their time as being friends Kara hadn't had a great childhood, though she had never been explicit about it. But with Zak she seemed to be able to relax, to be happy. He had to admit that he was envious of their happiness._

_Kara suddenly rolled over onto her back "frak it's hot"_

"_That's Caprica for you_. _You should be used to it by now"_

"_Well I've only lived here a couple of years" she took a cigarette from her bag and lit it_

"_Really? I guess I figured you had always lived here, you've never mentioned a home Colony"_

_Kara took a deep drag on her cigarette "that's cause I've never really had a Colony, not one that I'd call home anyway. Me and my mom moved around so much that I've actually had the pleasure of at some point living on every single Colony"_

"_Wow. I've never lived anywhere but Caprica. We stayed put waiting for my dad all the time"_

"_That's the problem with having a single parent, you've kinda got to follow them wherever they go" there was a note of bitterness in her tone._

"_Which was your favourite Colony?" Lee said after a pause. Kara seemed taken aback by the question, which surprised Lee "what?"_

"_No-one's ever asked me that before. Most people assume it _must _be my home Colony" she took another drag of her cigarette. Lee just gazed at her, her hair shining brightly with the sunlight breaking through the leaves of the tree._

"_What _is _your home Colony?"_

"_Picon, but I didn't stay there long. I guess," she paused "I guess my favourite Colony was Canceron. When I was ten my mum had to leave me at this military childcare facility for 3 months while she went away on a deep space assignment. I remember that it never stopped frakking snowing and I played out in it every day. I felt so…so frakking free." And she had been free for those short 3 months, free from the fear and the bruises. But it still never felt like home to her, nowhere did really. Caprica was getting there though, if it wasn't for the frakking heat._

_Lee watched Kara as she seemed to stare up into the leaves of the tree. He wasn't sure if she was even aware that he was still sitting there._

_Kara suddenly took a sharp deep breath "frak this" she said. Kara jumped to her feet and started to walk away from the tree._

"_Where are you going?"_

"_To the river" she called over her shoulder "you coming?" She lifted her top over her head, revealing her bra, and flung it to the side._

"_Well if you put it like that" Lee said under his breath. "Guard the tree little brother" Zak gave a small grunt and turned on his side._

_Lee followed Kara down to the water, gathering her shoes and slacks as he went so she wouldn't lose them. He arrived at the river just in time to see her dive six metres head first from a rock into the water below. She made a whooping noise as she surfaced._

"_You've got to get in here its frakking fantastic!" she yelled as she started to float on her back. Lee didn't need any more persuading. He threw down Kara's clothing and jumped straight in fully clothed. Kara let out a big guffaw as he surfaced "you're supposed to take at least your shoes off you ass"_

_Lee didn't seem to listen to her and dived back under the water. Kara laughed out loud again and then let out a yelp as Lee grabbed her foot and pulled her under the water. She surfaced coughing and wiping her short hair out of her eyes._

"_Oh you are so dead Lee Adama." They both began laughing as they splashed each other and dunked each others heads under the water. Zak had then joined them shortly after and all three of them played in the water for the rest of the day without a care in the world._

*********************************************************************

Lee's happy reverie was broken by the loud sounds of a number of officers entering the bunk room.

Kara took a look at Lee and rolled her eyes. Lee extinguished his stogie and drew the curtain closed on his bunk.

"Is there a free bunk going in here?" asked Helo quietly as he stood at the hatch. He seemed to have some new sets of uniform in his arms.

A few of the occupants to the room turned and looked at him "yeah, Boomer's old rack you should feel right at home there" one of them snapped. They all began laughing and slapped each other on the back. Helo didn't react and just turned to leave.

"Hey, that's enough" yelled Kara, stopping Helo in his tracks.

"Associating with toaster frakkers now Starbuck?" said Racetrack "or are you aiming to get a little action yourself?"

Kara launched herself suddenly out of her rack ready for a fight "Care to say that again Track?" she yelled, throwing down her stogie. Kara launched forward towards Racetrack, however she was halted in her tracks by a strong and muscular arm. Kara turned quickly in order to knock down whoever had dared to get in the way of her and her prey.

She found herself looking straight into a pair of bright blue eyes. All the fight suddenly flooded out of her as she was mesmerised by them.

"Care to repeat what you just said lieutenant?" Lee said turning his gaze from Kara's towards Racetrack

"No Sir!" Racetrack said as she stiffly saluted

"Then I suggest you get out of here and find Helo a bunk asap." Racetrack saluted, turned and walked out of the locker room.

Lee lowered his arm "you okay?" he asked Kara, turning his eyes back to hers. Those baby blues clutching at her heart again. After a pause Kara forced her eyes away from his and turned back towards her bunk.

"Welcome home huh" said Kara throwing herself back into her bunk. Despite Galactica not feeling quite like home anymore at least Lee was here with her.

"Energy bar?" said Lee reaching into his secret stash "I have a feeling we may not be too welcome in the mess hall for a while." He chucked the bar in Kara's bunk and went back to his bunk to carry on his private memories of happier times.


	5. Back to Basics

**AN:- Thank you all again for all your reviews! This chapter is mainly dealing with settling back into the fleet, which is important to what is coming up in later chapters. It is also important with regard to Kara's recovery from the Farms. (I also love pilot banter!)**

Chapter Four

She had only been back aboard Galactica for four weeks but for Kara everything seemed to be settling back into a monotonous routine. Three weeks ago she had finally been given the green light to fly again by Cottle and had started flying CAPs. It had been too frakking long for her to be out of the cockpit. It made her feel more alive than she had done for months and for a few hours made her forget the thoughts that were plaguing her mind.

Lee was the person currently occupying her thoughts the most. It really didn't help that he had taken it upon himself to be with her during all of the rare spare moments that he had. Not that she minded spending most of her time with him but part of her was cursing him for being a near permanent feature in her mind. Another part of her felt that it was unfortunate that he had such limited time when he wasn't working.

Kara was starting to feel that Lee was cutting more and more into her soul as each day passed.

*********************************************************************

Kara stepped out of her flight suit after a particularly gruelling 4 hours in her viper. She desperately needed a shower. She grabbed her kit from her locker, including her recently won back bottle of shampoo and left the bunk room for the head. She found herself wondering if Lee would be waiting for her like he usually did after her shower. If he would tease her again about her lack of hygiene and tell her to go have another shower before she stinks the room out.

After a wonderful 10 minute shower she returned to the bunk room to find it empty. She couldn't help but feel a pang of disappointment grip her heart. Kara tried her best to shove it away but she had to admit she was looking forward to embarking in some harmless banter with him as he attempted to complete his paperwork.

Kara sighed and began to get dressed to go the mess hall. With some luck they would be serving something that partially passed for food. If she was _really _lucky a certain CAG would be so lost in work he hadn't realise it was time to meet her.

Kara rolled her eyes at herself and wrenched open her locker with a crash.

*********************************************************************

Lee leafed through a mountain of paperwork whilst sitting in the Mess hall drinking his fourth cup of artificial coffee. He hated all this red tape crap. Their worlds had been destroyed and he _still _had to fill in daily patrol reports. He couldn't wait for the day when they ran out of paper. Even then he would probably be ordered to write the reports on toilet paper or his bare ass.

Lee took another sip of his coffee and winced. He swore that this gunk they were trying to pass off as coffee had gotten worse in his time away from the Galactica. He looked at his watch, 1815 hours. Kara would have finished her CAP by now he thought. Most likely she would be taking a long wanted shower. His mind started imagining the water cascading through her now longer hair and down her back. The way she sighed when the warmth of the water enveloped her, the steam rising.

A feminine voice suddenly broke through his thoughts.

"Huh?" said Lee as he broke out of his trance and looked up. Petty officer Dualla stood next to the table opposite him with a food tray in her hands.

"I said evening Captain, fancy meeting you here" she smiled, somewhat hopefully.

"Oh… hi Dee how are you?"

"I'm doing good" she smiled "may I?"

"Er" Lee looked discreetly at his watch. Ever since returning from Kobol he had made it a habit to meet up with Kara in their bunk room after she had finished CAP. He had decided that after his realisations on Kobol he didn't want to spend a moment apart from Kara if he could help it.

Lee looked up at Dualla who was still standing there with a look of helpless pleading on her face.

Frak.

"Sure" he said finally.

Dualla smiled widely and placed her tray on Lee's table as he moved aside some of his papers to accommodate her. He expected her take the seat opposite but instead she took the seat next to his.

Lee looked up and again saw she was looking at him intently a smile on her lips. Lee really didn't know what to say. Her eyes seemed to be demanding him to speak about something.

"So, um how are things going in the CIC?" he said finally.

"Good. Now your dad is back things seem to be getting back to normal at last." She smiled and took a mouthful of food "So are you going to be giving combat classes again now that you're back? I was thinking of joining up"

"I haven't really had the time to think about it yet. But if there are people who want me to of course I'll oblige." Lee turned over a page of his report and continued "How are things with you and Billy?" He had to ask the question. Dualla seemed to be sitting next to him, eager and ready to pounce and start humping his leg. He had _no_ idea where this new devotion of hers was coming from, sure they had exchanged pleasantries when Kara was gone, but he was just being nice.

Dualla seemed taken aback by the question "he's good. I haven't seen him in a while though. He's been busy with the President." Dualla was about to add something when she was abruptly interrupted by the loud crash of a tray landing on the table.

"Frakking food looks worse everyday. I swear this crap wasn't as bad last week. Look, its congealing already." Kara's brusque voice broke through anything Dualla was about to say as she heavily sat down at the table opposite Lee. Dualla gave Kara a stern look.

"What? Look at it" said Kara poking her food with her fork "frakking stuff is heartburn on a plate"

Lee gave a small laugh. Kara sure knew how to make an entrance he thought. The whole room was now looking their way. Kara of course was completely oblivious to the eyes watching her.

"I can't eat this crap" said Kara pushing her food away

"You have to eat Kara" said Lee gesturing to her plate

"I don't see a plate in front of you, _Captain_"

"This so called coffee is lining my stomach enough,_ lieutenant._"

Kara gave out a loud laugh and prodded her fork at the food again. Lee chuckled as she reluctantly scooped up some food and put it in her mouth. She pulled a disgusted face and threw down the fork

"Attractive Kara"

"Frak you Lee" Kara said picking her fork up again.

Kara looked up as she heard a discrete cough coming from next to her. She took a mouthful of food, winced again and swallowed exaggeratedly. Kara hadn't really fully recognised that Dualla was sitting at the table. Suddenly it all registered with her. Dualla was sitting_ next_ to Lee, just the two of them.

Acute jealously ran right through her body. The thought struck her that she had stupidly not realised that Lee must be on some sort of date. "Sorry I, I didn't realise you two were" she couldn't finish the sentence.

Before Lee could say anything to contradict what she had said Kara had shoved her plate towards him. "Here knock yourself out" she said standing up.

"Kara?" Lee said concerned "you really don't have to leave, Kara!" he reached out to grab her hand but he was too late and she had walked away.

"So as I was saying…" Dualla began but Lee's focus was planted solely on the hatchway Kara had just exited from.

*********************************************************************

Commander Adama sat at his desk in his quarters perusing through star maps. He was attempting to figure out the best route to take to the Lagoon Nebula. A gentle knock at the hatch interrupted his reading.

"Come in" Adama bellowed out.

"Sorry to disturb you so late Commander" said Roslin entering the room.

"You're always welcome, please" Adama said, gesturing to his couch.

"This isn't a social visit I'm afraid. We have a problem"

"Go on" Adama said joining Roslin on the couch

"Someone seems to have had a camera during the incident on the Gideon. The footage is being shown around the fleet. I'm afraid your men can be seen firing into an unarmed crowd without much provocation."

"The official report says that my men were attacked"

"The people are not interested in what your report states. They see it as the military covering up the incident. People are angry Bill."

"So what do you suggest we do?" replied Adama gruffly

"We need to show that the military are not people to be feared and show the fleet what really happened on the Giedon. We could allow access to the reporter who leaked the footage. Show what life on a Battlestar is really like"

"I will not have the safety of this crew jeopardised or put under scrutiny by the _people_. My crew has to make difficult decisions every day, they are not infallible."

"And we need to show that side of them. Bill they're calling the incident the Gideon_ Massacre._ This must be contained and fast before people lose faith in the military completely, which would be a disaster."

After short pause Adama said in a slightly softer tone of voice "I will have to view the footage first before it is released."

"I would expect nothing else" said Roslin smiling.

*********************************************************************

Kara needed to hit something and fast. She grabbed her shorts from her locker and headed quickly for the gym. Thankfully she had the room to herself. She sullenly wrapped her knuckles in tape but didn't bother putting on her gloves.

Kara began to pound into the punching-bag intermittently stopping in order to give it a strong roundhouse kick. She imagined with vehemence that it was Dualla's head she was pummelling.

"What did that bag ever do to you Starbuck?"

Kara wheeled round and saw Helo standing by the hatchway. "Fancy being a live target Helo? Cause I really have the urge to hit someone right now."

"Whoa, just want to know if everything is okay" Helo replied holding up his hands in surrender. Kara rolled her eyes and wiped the sweat from her brow.

"Here make yourself useful" she said tossing him a pair of pads. Helo slipped the pads on and Kara started jabbing at them, with not quite the same amount of rigour as before.

"So are you going to tell me what's bothering you?" Helo asked

"Nope"

"Fair enough"

Kara threw a few more punches and ducks of Helo's gentle counter-attack. The more she hit the pads the more she managed to push the pain that was gripping her heart.

"Have you been coming up with a plan to return to Caprica?" asked Helo after a few minutes

"I was working on a plan with Lee, but we haven't come up with anything that will be agreed by the old man" the mention of Lee sent a sharp pain back up through her. She gave the pads a couple of sharp blows and then sank down onto a work-bench.

"You'll work out a plan you always do"

"How's Sharon?" asked Kara changing the subject

"She's locked up and watched 24 hours a day every day" Helo said bitterly.

"And the baby?"

"Doing fine according to Sharon, but they haven't done any scans to make sure" Helo walked up to Kara and sat next to her on the work-bench.

"I can believe you're going to be a daddy to a baby toaster"

Helo stood back up again and spun around "you know what Kara? I don't frakking care if I've fallen in love with a machine and we're going to have baby together. At least I'm honest with myself."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Like you said Kara, everyone is grasping to take back what they had. All I had before was a stupid crush. I never even thought about having kids before. Now I have a woman I love and who loves me, regardless of who she is, and we have our first child on the way"

Kara didn't know how to respond to that. In her mind she had nothing anywhere near close to what Helo had with Sharon. Not that she wanted kids, they were the furthest thing from her mind. "You're lucky" she said finally

"And you're out of shape Starbuck" he smiled and gestured to the weights at the end of the work-bench. Kara lay down beneath the weights as Helo gently lifted them into her outstretched arms.

"You'll find someone Kara"

"Thought I had already found that someone and that I'm meant to go flying across the galaxy to rescue him?" Kara replied as she lowered and raised the weights.

"If you _want_ him to be that someone. Sure he's a good guy and it gives you something to fight for a while." Kara lowered and lifted the weights again with a small grunt. "But I don't think he's who you really want"

"You think you know me so well Helo" Kara said in a light tone.

"How long have we known each other?"

"Basic training"

Helo took the weights out of her hands and placed them back into their stand. Kara sat up and wiped the sweat from her brow and neck with her towel.

"I have been a keen observer since then of your exploits" he smiled.

Kara's laugh was halted as she saw Lee standing at the hatch-way.

"Please continue Helo, I want to hear about these exploits" Lee joked

"Tell him nothing Helo" Kara said with a suddenly serious but playful face.

"I think I'll leave you kids to discuss Kara's _exploits _alone. I've got a 5 minute timeslot to see Sharon in 20 minutes" he left the room with a grin on his face.

Lee turned his eyes towards Kara "fancy a quick spar?" he said.

"Always"

They began a slow and gentle sparring match, both of them wearing their boxing gloves and lightly tapping each other. For the first five minutes they danced in silence completely focused on each other.

It was Lee who broke the silence "So what did Helo mean by your exploits?" he teased

"Surely even you remember what it was like at basic and flight school. Nothing to do but learn, fight and frak about" she took a long swing which Lee dodged

"Sure I do. Despite popular believe I didn't always have a stick up my ass" Kara laughed and swung at him again, a little harder this time "frak Kara can we keep this a gentle spar or shall I go and get my mouth guard?"

"Sorry" they began gently tapping and circling each other again. "I didn't mean to interrupt earlier by the way"

"You didn't interrupt anything. Dee invited herself to sit down, that's all."

Kara felt relief wash through her, covering it up by taking a few more light jabs at Lee's torso. After a couple of minutes of silent sparring Kara said "want to see if there's a good triad game going?"

"Sure, I have plenty to bet with."

Kara laughed loudly "and I have plenty of goodies to win from you."

"Your ass is mine Starbuck" Lee joked

"Hmm, is that a promise Apollo?"

Lee playfully jabbed at Kara, a look of mock surprise covering his face.

*********************************************************************

D'Anna Biers watched the footage from her report. She smiled inwardly to herself. The footage was tearing the fleet apart and everything was going according to her plan.

She had contemplated trying to get the footage back to her people. Unfortunately none of it contained any of the people considered to be of particular "interest" to the cylons however. D'Anna decided that she needed to get inside Galactica in order to get the information she needed.

The only question was how she was going to get inside without being detected.

*********************************************************************

It was getting late and the triad game was still going strong, goodies had been lost and won, lots of stogies smoked and numerous glasses of ambrosia downed. It felt like old times finally, with the laughter from their table resonating around the Rec room. They were starting to get an audience.

"I'm out" said Hotdog throwing his hand down

"Aw come on Constanza you gotta bet big if you want to play with the big dogs" Kara mocked, gesturing to the pot. There was already a full pile containing cubits, a selection of personal items, a pass for a private session in the observation lounge, two pairs of socks, soap and Lee's box of tampons. The hand had been going for 20 minutes already. Everyone but Kara, Hotdog and Racetrack had folded.

"Frak I'm going to regret this" said Hotdog. "I raise you 2 condoms" he added pulling the shiny wrappers out of his pocket "ribbed for your pleasure" he grinned

"Nice Hotdog" said Racetrack crinkling up her nose "Those better not be used. I'll see your bet" and she threw in another pair of socks, which by the look of them had just come off her feet.

The bet passed to Kara who had a big grin on her face. Lee had given up years ago trying to work out Kara's tell. What ever face she was pulling it was always a mystery what was in her hand and she always seemed to know what everyone else was holding. Lee had lost count of the times he had lost big to her. The only person who had seemed to best her was Baltar and thankfully that frak wasn't at this table tonight.

"I see your gross bet and raise you…" Kara had to think for a moment, all of her winnings and everyone else's were in the pot already "one sweater" she grinned as she unzipped her sweater and threw it in the pot.

"Frakkingtastic, when did this turn into strip triad?" Hotdog laughed.

Kara just smugly grinned again "so are you gonna call Hotdog?"

"Frak" he said. He looked around him for a moment "I see your bet _Sir_" he untied his boots and threw in his socks. Kara pulled a disgusted face.

"Racetrack?" Kara added

"Urm, I'll so see that bet" Racetrack said desperately searching around for an anti. She had already bet her socks and she couldn't bet her uniform. "Frak, okay" Racetrack pulled her arms into her tanks and after a little manoeuvre pulled out a black lace bra.

Kara let out a massive guffaw at the shocked expressions and opened mouths around the table as the bra landed on top of the pot.

Lee coughed then said "so what you got Starbuck?" secretly hoping that she wins the bra.

Kara stopped laughing and refocused on her game. She gave Lee a wink and then slapped her cards face up on the table "full major" she grinned. It wasn't as high as full colours but Lee had a feeling it didn't need to be.

"Aw frak" said Hotdog launching to his feet and throwing his cards at the table, which were closely followed by Racetracks' cards.

Lee marvelled as the smile grew across Kara's face as she spread out her sweater and scooped her winnings into the middle.

"Gods she's beautiful" Lee thought. It melted his heart when she was this happy.

Lee found that he had been staring at her jubilation for far too long as he noticed Helo was looking between him and Kara from across the room. Lee broke off his eye contact with Kara and tried to look elsewhere, making Helo laugh from afar.

Oblivious to this Kara was still laughing and joking with the other people around the table. She gathered up her full sweater from the table "ladies, gentleman, it's been a pleasure" she then strutted out of the Rec room. She was on a complete high, ambrosia working its way nicely through her veins in a complete euphoria. She grinned as she saw Lee walk in line with her.

"What do you think?" Kara teased as she flung the black lace bra over her shoulder.

A million responses ran through Lee's head but he was speechless, instead he just grinned widely. Kara guffawed as she continued to strut down the corridor. Lee shook his head. Only Kara could get away with only wearing her slacks and military issue bra down the corridors, he thought.

*********************************************************************

That night the Battlestar Galactica drifted through space with its children, the fleet, tucked protectively by its side. Down its long "A" shaped hallways there was mostly silence as the majority of the crew now slept. The only noises came from the sparsely manned CIC watching the CAP on dradis and the odd crew members making their way to the head. The remnants of empty glasses were still strewn around the officer's Rec room which was now eerily empty.

As the fleet slept they were completely unaware that not more than two FTL jumps away drifted another Battlestar. A Battlestar that was attempting to follow and find the cylon fleet. A Battlestar that was desperately trying to enact revenge for the fall of the colonies.

That Battlestar was called the Pegasus and she was hungry for cylon prey.


	6. The Towel

Chapter Five

Admiral Cain stared at the dradis consol in the CIC with wide-awake eyes, despite having been up all night studying star maps. She was contemplating the cylon's next move. For a year now they had been following a small fleet of about two to three baseships and an unknown ship. She had worked out that they must be following someone or something, but she had no idea who or what. What she did know was that the cylons considered their target important enough to follow it zealously across the galaxy.

"What are your orders Admiral?" asked Fisk

"We need to start predicting where those frakkers are going" said Cain sternly. "If they are following someone then they'll be tracking the systems where people would most likely jump to."

"Systems that hold natural resources?" asked Fisk with caution in his voice. He knew full well not to inadvertently question the Admiral's orders.

"Exactly. Lieutenant Hoshi I want you to find the nearest systems that could potentially be sources of tylium."

"Yes Sir" saluted Hoshi.

"We'll start with those systems and then move on to more outer systems to see if any of them could hold resources."

Cain signed and massaged the ache in her neck. It was going to be a long couple of months.

*********************************************************************

They had just come off from a 15 hour rotation and they were all exhausted. Kara stood under the spray of the warm shower trying to rid her body of all the aches and pains that coursed through her. It had been a week since the infamous triad game where she had cleaned up the table.

Kara had lost count of the people who had asked her if she was wearing the bra she had won from Racetrack. Secretly she had no plans to wear the bra anytime soon, it really wasn't her style, but she had hidden it in her locker for safekeeping.

Kara stepped out of the shower and cocooned herself in her towel. Frak she needed some sleep regardless of whether or not it was only 1900 hours. She grabbed another towel and started to dry her hair stealing a glance over at the shower stalls as Lee exited with a towel wrapped around his waist.

Kara loved that towel. She loved it even more when it wasn't around his waist.

They exited the officer's head together still wrapped up in their towels. They were too tired to even idly chat. Both of them longed for some down time.

*********************************************************************

D'Anna Biers covertly eyed the corridors of the Galactica as Dualla guided her through the ship. She had never imagined that it would be so easy to get onboard. Now all she had to do was find the "subjects" that she was after. She had some specific objectives to achieve and report back to her people.

D'Anna smiled forcefully as Dualla showed them yet another pointless feature in the corridor. At this rate she would bore all her viewers to death. She swore that getting this woman to show them around was the Commander's idea of a bad joke.

Out of the corner of her eye D'Anna saw a man and a woman walking side by side wearing nothing but towels. She wondered if they were two of the people she was after. Unfortunately her guide seemed to be leading them in the opposite direction.

D'Anna swore under her breath.

*********************************************************************

Kara pulled her military bra over her still damp hair and huffed loudly.

"What's wrong with you?" asked Lee who was still only wearing his towel

"We just finished a 15 hour rotation" she answered pulling her tank over head.

Lee grinned "yeah, well, you better get used to it. We're gonna be short on pilots till the rest of the fleet pulls the stick out of its collective fat ass"

Kara couldn't help but laugh and sneak a look at Lee's abs "more fallout from Tigh's moment of glory?"

Lee was taken aback and walked towards Kara "you heard about his death threat?"

"Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy" Kara quipped "I just can't believe that I haven't been called in for questioning yet."

"Oh, you were top of the list. But don't worry I told Tigh that you wouldn't know Caprican poetry if it was hot-soldered across your helmet."

Kara was caught between being offended by that comment and loving how he was teasing her. Kara decided that she would make him eat his own words as she walked right up to him saying "From the darkness, you must fall, failed and weak to darkness all." She was so close that Lee could smell her freshly washed hair "Kataris. Not one of his best"

_When the frak had she learnt poetry_ thought Lee completely taken aback.

"Can I be a suspect again?" Kara added "please?"

Lee didn't know how to respond to Kara quoting poetry at him so he just gazed into her eyes. It took all of his resolve not to grab her and kiss her. As much as he wanted to kiss her, a crowded bunkroom was not the ideal place and besides she would probably smack him with that right hook of hers.

Kara didn't want to break off from looking at Lee either. She found herself wishing that she was in a much more private place then in the bunkroom during flight rotation. Unfortunately her pleasant thoughts were interrupted by loud noises coming from the corridor. The source of the noise was Hotdog who was closely followed by Kat as they came running into the bunkroom.

Kara made a mental note to put Kat through hell later.

Two other people were now standing at the hatch, one of them with a camera in his hand. Kara had heard that a reporter was coming aboard, someone's frakked up idea of boosting moral in the fleet. She decided it would be wise to start putting on some more clothing as Lee yelled at Kat for playing up to the camera and mooning.

Kat was really grating at Kara. Her moods had been fluctuating all week, disobeying her orders and picking fights. She could swear that Kat was getting more like her everyday, her arrogance going way off the scale.

Lee ordered Hotdog and Kat out of the senior officer's bunkroom and then turned his attention to the reporter.

"So, you must be the reporter we were expecting" he said holding out his hand.

Kara smirked discreetly as Lee lost his towel, stealing glances at his well formed behind. She would bet cubits that the camera footage would be played repeatedly in slow motion by virtually every woman in the fleet, herself included.

"Whose brilliant idea was that?" asked Lee gesturing to the now empty hatchway.

"Roslin's idea of trying to rally the fleet behind the military" Kara said exaggeratedly and rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, right" laughed Lee as he opened his locker. He grabbed his shorts and slipped them on "You'd better get used to the reporters being here, they're going to be dogging us for the next two days. Personal interviews start tomorrow and yes they are mandatory."

"I'm not talking to a frakking reporter"

"Direct orders from the Commander so you can either attend at your allotted time or I'll make sure she interrupts you at an inconvenient time."

Kara threw her towel at Lee "frakker" she teased.

*********************************************************************

D'Anna smiled privately to herself. She had found Captain Lee Adama and who she guessed to be, from Leoben's description, Lieutenant Kara Thrace. Those two had seemed awfully _cosy _in the bunkroom. D'Anna was under strict instructions to make sure she obtained footage of the Captain and Lieutenant as well as a number of other people.

Her interviews would begin tomorrow and hopefully she would also get the chance to film the hangar deck. It would be useful to know how many vipers were protecting the fleet.

D'Anna played back the footage she had obtained so far. The footage from the officer's bunkroom started. She paused the film and gazed at the image. The Captain was only in his towel with the Lieutenant leaned in next to him in her underwear.

"In order to destroy people all you have to do is find their weaknesses" D'Anna said quietly to herself and smiled. She pressed play and continued watching, plans forming in her head.

*********************************************************************

Kara had finally gotten the few hours sleep she really needed but it had still been an effort to haul herself out of her rack at 0430 hours. Her second 15 hour rotation was fairly uneventful and she had successfully managed to avoid the reporter for most of the day. The only time that she had been caught on camera was when Kat had kicked off on the hangar deck.

Kara had no idea what was bothering Kat but the way she was going she would get herself killed and they needed all the pilots they could get.

It was now the final day of filming on the ship and Kara was feeling particularly pleased with herself for missing her personal interview slot. Lee hadn't mentioned her lack of attendance yet so she started to think that she was really going to get away with it.

Kara was spending her free time that morning with Lee. They had both gone early to the gym.

They had been punching and kicking the stuffing out of the punch-bag, giggling and laughing at each other as they took their turns. But they had given up with serious exercise about 20 minutes ago. Now they were kicking the bag _at _each other and starting to play fight.

Kara and Lee were completely unaware of D'Anna and her cameraman who had taken up residence just outside the hatch. They were filming the whole exchange of giggles and playful blows between them.

Lee playfully swiped his arm at Kara's torso as she feigned being injured spinning around so that her back was to him. Lee suddenly remembered something Zak had told him once and had a devious idea. He stealthily leapt forward and squished his fingertips into the sides of her stomach. Lee never thought he would live two seconds beyond hearing Kara squeal the way she did. She squirmed at his onslaught attempting to wriggle away.

Lee felt a surge of supremacy as he continued to unabashedly tickle her until her legs gave way and she was in a giggly heap on the floor.

*Squeal* "you are frakking dead Adama!" *Squeal*

"Sorry what was that Thrace?" said Lee tickling her even harder.

"Frak! Lee!" Kara yelped again.

"It's hard to believe that the almighty viper ace known as Starbuck can be defeated so easily"

"Frak you! You're cheating!"

Kara took advantage of Lee's temporary cessation of his onslaught. She quickly flew her legs out connecting with Lee's legs, sweeping him off his feet. He came crashing to the ground knocking the air out of his lungs. Lee coughed deeply as he laughed and tried to get his breath back.

"Oh Lee," mocked Kara as she stood up "you should know by now that no-one can beat Starbuck."

"Wanna bet?" said Lee launching himself off the floor and grabbing at Kara's waist again.

*Squeal* "Lee no!" *giggle* "stop it!"

D'Anna smiled as she gestured to her cameraman to walk away. She stole a quick glance at Kara and Lee as they each battled for control, their laughter echoing down the corridor.

*********************************************************************

Early evening had fallen on the Galactica. Most of the crew were trying to get their 5 minutes of fame with D'Anna Biers. She was currently in the officer's Rec room taking some last minute interviews. Everyone was crowded around and watching.

Kara decided she would hide as far away as possible from all the commotion in the virtually empty hangar deck. She was currently underneath her viper with a wrench.

"Frakking piece of…" she said as she struggled with some of the parts.

"Anything I can help with?" asked Lee as he knelt under the viper.

"She felt off after that last encounter today but I can't find what's wrong." Kara banged the wrench against a canopy. After the session in the gym her day had gone dramatically downhill. Firstly Kat had flunked her landing and was stretchered to lifestation screaming her head off. She managed to damage the deck and her viper because she had been overdosing on stims. What made matters worse was the frakking reporter capturing it all on camera. Secondly they had another encounter with the cylons. Their attacks seemed to have increased threefold since Kobol, one of these days their luck was going to run out.

"Hey are you okay?" asked Lee concerned

"Yeah, I went to see Kat about an hour ago. She's was crying and apologising. I can't believe I had no idea she was heavy on the stims."

"It's not your fault Kara"

"I'm her instructor Lee and you're her CAG, she's _both _of our responsibilities." Kara banged the wrench against her viper again "frakking thing."

"At this rate Kara you're viper will never fly again" Lee said as he slid underneath the viper. He shined a torch at the underside "are you sure anything is wrong?"

"I know my viper Lee and something definitely felt wrong after I shot that raider down."

"Did you take a hit?"

"I don't think so but I think some of the raider's debris caught my underside" Kara grabbed her torch, which had been resting on her chest and shone it deep inside the viper's belly.

"Just a sec I think I see the problem" Lee took Kara's wrench, leaned over and started levering open a bolt above Kara.

"You sure?" questioned Kara "hang on it can't be that"

"Sometimes an impact can cause pressure on the valves behind this panel, which could throw out the yaw trajectory."

Lee struggled with the bolt but finally it started to come loose. Suddenly there was popping sound and then a cracking sound.

"What the…" was all the words Kara could get out before the bolt flew out causing oil to flood out from behind the panel. Lee slid quickly out of the way, his arms coated in the slick black oil.

"Frak!" Kara cried out as the oil came pouring out on top of her. She pushed herself on the backboard out from underneath the viper, assisted by Lee who pulled her feet. She was covered, her blond hair mostly turned black.

Kara quickly wiped the oil from her face and cursed.

"Frak I'm sorry I had no idea the damage was that bad" said Lee. Kara was silent incredulous of what had just happened and looking down at herself.

After a minute Lee began to laugh.

"It's not funny"

"I know, I'm sorry I can't help it, you look ridiculous" he said still laughing.

Kara looked down at herself and also began to laugh.

"Come on" Lee added "Lets get you cleaned up the Chief can deal with this mess."

*********************************************************************

It took about 6 showers to get the oil out of her hair with Lee watching on and laughing.

"I think you missed a bit" he teased as she exited from her 6th shower. He was fully expecting the towel that flew at his head.

"It's not funny"

"Come on, you would be laughing your ass off it was me"

"True" Kara said grinning. She walked slowly up to Lee. He was _not_ expecting the coated in oil tank to fly at his head. Small splodges of the slick liquid stuck to his head and hair.

"Oh you are so going to pay for that" he said and took off after her as she fled down the corridor laughing. They didn't stop running until they came to the bunk room. The hatchway was closed as all of the pilots had agreed to block off the room until the cameras were off the ship. Kara and Lee closed it behind them.

Blissfully the bunkroom was empty as everyone was still in the Rec room with D'Anna Biers.

"Okay I give up" said Kara raising her hands in mock surrender. Lee chucked the tank on the table

"You should know never to lower your defences Adama" cackled Kara as she grabbed the tank and whipped it at Lee's torso.

"Frak! Kara"

Lee managed to grab the tank but Kara didn't let go. He gave it a strong yank completely catching Kara by surprise. She flew forward and collided straight into Lee, which threw him off balance. Stumbling backwards Lee's leg caught on the table and gravity did the rest. He hit the deck closely followed by Kara who came tumbling after him landing squarely on his torso.

They were nose to nose.

"Um" was all Lee could manage as he tried to keep his body under control. Having Kara lying on top of his was testing all of his resolve.

"Nice balance Lee" said Kara trying to sound normal despite not moving from her current position.

"Um, Kara" Lee said again. Kara just looked straight into his eyes.

"Yeah" she was expecting him to yell at her to get off of him.

"Um, I think you lost your towel" he said with a small voice. Kara felt her face flush as she realised their bare chests were pressed together. Somehow she had lost a grip on her towel when she fell.

She started to stand up "frak, close your eyes."

"What? Kara I've seen you in states of undress hundreds of times."

"This is different" She couldn't believe or have dreamt that she would find herself in this position. For some reason she couldn't lift herself up off of him and let him watch her stand up with her bare breasts exposed. A desirous thought then hit her, if she had lost her towel what the frak had happened to his? No sooner had she contemplated this possibility did she know that the positioning of his towel was not really the problem anymore as she felt him harden against her thigh.

All she could manage to say was "oh."

Lee pushed Kara's torso up and she jumped to her feet repositioning her towel as she went. Lee also jumped to his feet trying to hide his embarrassment with his towel.

Kara couldn't look Lee in the eye so she turned her back to him.

"Frak" was all Lee managed to say.

_Kara had no idea what suddenly came over her to explain what she did next. Months later she would look back at this moment and realise that she just knew that it was the right time to act. She would look back without regret and smile about it with a hint of sadness. She would know that it was one of the best decisions she ever made and dream of the moment over and over again. _

_It was also a moment that would change her life forever…_

Kara had spun suddenly on her heels and before she knew it she had cupped his face with her hands, her lips meeting firmly with his. Lee was completely stunned by the sudden kiss but began kissing her back immediately, his hand stroking up her arms and meeting at the top of her neck.

The kiss then softened, their tongues starting to caress each other gently, eyes closed and taking in the taste of each other.

As they kissed Lee slowly moved Kara backwards until her back met gently with the hatch. The cool metal of the hatch made Kara gasp and she paused momentarily breaking off the kiss. Their breathing came in deep pants as they pressed their foreheads together. Lee felt like he could stay this way forever as he pulled his head back and gazed into Kara's deep green eyes, he was lost in them. The desire for her burnt through him as he gently stroked her face and lightly pressed his lips back on hers.

Their lips started a slow dance again with Lee stroking his hands down Kara's back. He then reached out his arm quickly dogging the hatch.

"Are you sure this is what you want?" Lee whispered as he kissed gently up her jaw and nipped at the bottom of her ear.

Kara didn't respond instead she brought her hand down to her towel. She looked into Lee's eyes as the towel slowly fell from her breasts and cascaded to the floor. Lee's brain was in overdrive taking in Kara's body. _Absolutely perfect_ he thought as he admired her smooth skin with her curves in all the right places.

His hands moved from Kara's back around her side and caressed the sides of her breasts. Kara let out a gasp as Lee gently brushed his thumb across her nipples. Her gasp was halted as Lee brought his lips back to hers. As Kara slowly kissed him her hands felt their way down his strong torso and loosened the towel. Lee pressed himself closer as the towel dropped to his feet. So many thoughts were going through his head. He had lost count of the times he had dreamt about having a naked Kara pressed up against him.

Lee wanted to take his time, make love to her slowly but he also desired to grab her and frak her up against the hatch.

Kara made the decision for him as she reached down and took him in her hand. It took all of Lee's resolve not to embarrass himself right there and then as he gasped at her soft touch gently starting to stroke him up and down his length.

"Oh my Gods" Lee sighed into Kara's ear. Kara responded by nipping at his ear lobe. As great as the feeling was, Lee only wanted to come inside of Kara not all over her hand. He reached down and cupped her behind lifting her off the ground. Her legs went around him holding him tight.

As much as he loved it Lee wasn't sure how long he could sustain this position.

Kara seemed to read to his mind as she breathed "table, now" into his ear.

Lee pushed away from the wall and carried her to the table, sitting her gently on the side.

Kara slowly laid herself out against the table arching her back, her legs still enveloping his waist. Lee stroked his hand down the length of her body all the way to her nub, giving it a small pinch. Kara had never come so quickly in her life, the waves of pleasure striking through her body like a lightening bolt.

Lee couldn't wait any longer. He grabbed Kara's hips and brought her closer to his crotch, leaning over her pressing himself against her.

"Are you sure?" he asked gently.

"Gods yes! Please!" Kara softly cried out.

Lee leaned further over and pushed himself slowly into her, hooking his arm around her lower back. They began a steady rhythm, perfectly complementing each others thrusts as they looked intently at each other, worshipping the passion washing over them.

Kara felt the waves of pleasure continuously flowing through her body so that she didn't know when one orgasm was finishing and the next one beginning. It didn't take long before she let out a cry as a sudden sharp orgasm hit, sending shockwaves through Lee. He felt himself release strongly inside of her, satisfaction resounding through his body.

Kara smiled, putting her hand around Lee's neck pulling her lips up to his.

Lee was the one who spoke first "well that makes things more complicated" he said smiling into her lips. Kara followed his smile and then bit down on his lower lip, stroking her hand through his hair.

Unfortunately the beauty of their moment was very rudely interrupted by someone trying to noisily open the hatch. Kara and Lee froze staring wide eyed at each other both wondering if they had locked the hatch.

They began to breathe again when the hatch didn't open.

Their lips had just met again when a loud banging echoed through the room.

"Open the frak up" came an angry voice through the hatch.

"Frak off!" Kara shouted back over Lee's shoulder.

"I need to get to my bunk. I have direct orders from the CAG"

"Frakking liar" muttered Kara and was just about to put the voice straight when she realised she couldn't. She couldn't shout out that she knew Lee hadn't given that order because he was currently nestled between her thighs and still inside of her.

"Frak" Lee said as the banging started on the hatch again.

Kara really didn't want to break her contact with Lee as they separated. She grabbed her towel wrapping it around herself and then paused in front of the hatch.

"Frak, how do we explain us being in here alone?" she said.

Lee hadn't thought of that. If anyone found out that he and Kara had been locked in the bunkroom together the rumours would spread like wildfire. He couldn't imagine how he would lie convincingly to his father that there wasn't any truth behind the ship-wide gossip.

"Get in my rack" said Kara as she quickly scooped up their clothing and threw them in her locker. The banging on the hatch continued, she was going to hurt whoever was behind it. Lee threw himself in Kara's rack and drew the curtain as Kara opened the hatch. Palladino barged right past Kara nearly knocking her off her feet. He was closely followed by other pilots trying to get to their racks.

"Next time frak someone during down time not when we want to sleep" sneered Palladino as he barged back out of the room with a bag over his shoulder leaving Kara speechless. She would have retorted but everyone in the bunkroom was staring in her direction.

"Who have you got hidden in your rack Starbuck?" laughed out Duck.

"Frak off" said Kara sneaking into her bunk. She knew they wouldn't open her curtain, they knew better than that. Kara lay out on her back. It was a frakked up way to end such an amazing night.

Suddenly she felt Lee's hand reach under her towel and gently stroke her stomach. Kara closed her eyes and smiled as she took in his touch. She didn't care if there were people just outside the curtain getting ready for bed.

Kara rolled over onto her front and straddled Lee's waist discarding her towel. Lee sighed contently as stroked his hands up to her breasts. He was more than ready for round two. Kara looked at Lee as she lifted her body and then lowered herself onto him.

Lee gripped Kara's waist as she started a slow but steady pace. She pushed her hand up against the roof of the bunk to gain more leverage biting her lip to stop herself crying out. Kara felt the pressure building up inside of her as she clenched her muscles around him. It didn't take long before the pressure burst inside of her sending bolts of pleasure through her body.

She was completely satisfyingly spent.

Lee sat upwards scooping Kara into his arms. He quickly lifted her slightly and twisted them round so that he was now on top. Kara settled back into the bunk as Lee started thrusting steadily into her as he nipped at her neck soothing the marks with his tongue.

It didn't take long for Lee to reach his peak and come hard collapsing into Kara's shoulder to stop himself from groaning out loud. He could feel Kara satisfied panting beneath him. Lee carefully rolled to the side pulling Kara half on top of him. She settled herself into his side drifting off into sleep. The bunkroom was so silent that Lee was sure that they had been heard but he didn't give a frak. He nestled himself into Kara and closed his eyes.

Lee found himself being partly thankful for Palladino's interruption.

This way he got to sleep with Kara in his arms.


	7. A Glimpse of the Future

**AN: Thank you again for the reviews and support it means a lot to me. I've learnt how to respond to reviews now so I promise I will thank people personally from now on :) This is only a short chapter but don't worry I have already written chapter 7 which just needs a bit of editing.**

Chapter 6

_Unnamed and Secret Military Base – England, Earth_

Dr Caroline Richards sighed as she leaned back in her chair. It had been a very long two weeks for her and her team. She had originally wanted to put her guests into their own individual rooms and start the next set of tests. Her plans however had been scuppered by Governmental red tape.

The crash of the ship had been very public, filmed and broadcasted around the world. There was no way to cover it up now. As soon as her conference had finished there was a complete lockdown. The world organisations all wanted a look in and the Security Council was in constant assembly.

Finally after two weeks of arguing she had been given the go ahead to continue her work. The next stage would be a lot more interesting and insightful. The guests, after being kept constantly unconscious, would be allowed to wake up. She and her team would observe their reactions to their new surroundings. She would also perform language tests so that her state of the art computer could create a translation program.

What Caroline longed to do was _talk_ to her guests and to establish where they had come from and why they were here.

The robot had been confined to an extra-secure cell deep in the basement of the military base. Caroline had managed to keep the large amount of scientists away from it but she knew she couldn't hold them off forever.

The others were currently being held in their own individual rooms. They were large enough to hold a bed, some fitted cupboards and a small adjacent room contained a toilet, sink and shower. The rooms were very white and very sterile looking. Each room and bathroom had one way mirrors installed so the occupants could be observed constantly.

*********************************************************************

Groups of scientists gathered around the windows to the rooms. They were waiting impatiently for their guests to wake up fully for the first time; they all wanted to see what they were really like.

In each of the rooms contained a television, two towels, one Styrofoam cup containing fresh water and two chocolate biscuits. The television was on but muted. Each of the guest's reactions to the objects would be closely monitored and analysed.

The male they had nicknamed unimaginatively as "Mr Robot" was the first to wake up. The scientists all looked intently as he sat up suddenly on the bed and stretched his body yawning. The scientists all made notes that the "aliens" could yawn.

They continued to jot down various notes as the hours rolled by, cataloguing everything their guests did and did not do.

*********************************************************************

It was now the first evening, 9 hours since their "guests" had woken up. Caroline sat in the lab watching them. Most of the other scientists had gone to bed leaving only a few night watch members of their team. They had made a lot of progress today and Caroline was delighted.

"So did they live up to your expectations?" asked Major Ford who had just entered the lab. Caroline smiled warmly at him.

"They're doing fine so far" she said.

"Wanna fill me in on what I missed?"

Ford had been called away to speak at a formal meeting in London. He had spent the last 24 hours talking through the potential security risks the aliens could pose and whether they needed to take defensive steps. Fortunately he had managed to calm them down and explain that there was currently no sign of any other spaceships.

"Well" Caroline began "Mr Robot was the first to wake up. As expected he didn't go near the water and biscuits at first just looked at them and thought better of it. He worked out how to change the channels on the TV quickly so I guess they must have something similar where they come from."

"How'd you figure that?" Ford asked gently.

Caroline shrugged "if he'd never seen a TV before it probably would have freaked him out or confused him a lot more."

"True. So what did he watch?"

Caroline laughed briefly "he flipped through the channels quickly until he came to the sports channels. He didn't seem to like the football, tennis, golf or any of the other international sports. When he found the rugby he stopped and has been glued to it for hours. Not sure who he's routing for."

Ford laughed "who was playing?"

"England versus New Zealand"

"Great the first thing the alien get to see is us getting our arses kicked"

"You never know, we might get lucky this time. Anyways, the second person to wake up was who we've nicknamed "Brunette." She's spent most of the day hiding under her duvet. At first she was swearing and banging her hands against the walls. Took her an hour to give that up then three hours to drink the water and eat the biscuits."

"Did she watch the TV?"

"Not at all just switched it off. The second pilot we've dubbed lamely as "legs" due to his injury from the crash woke up at the same time as "Blue Eyes." Legs was saying what I imagine to be their version of expletives then went straight into the shower. He was in there about an hour and then examined his leg for a while. Then he settled back on the bed and watched the TV."

"What did he watch?"

"The shopping channel"

"Okay…"

"Exactly what I thought. It took him about 4 hours to drink the water. He hasn't touched the biscuits. Blue Eyes watched the TV straight away like Mr Robot. He liked the news channels. He was sat there for hours. Looked like he was trying to understand as much as he could. To be honest he frowned through a lot of it."

"Probably didn't like what he saw."

"Hmmm maybe, anyway he turned it off after about 4 hours. It had only taken him an hour to drink the water and then the biscuits two hours after that. Now he's just sprawled out on his bed. "Blondie," Simms chose that name by the way. Blondie was last to wake up we think, though we have suspicions she was feigning for a while. She sat up and mumbled something, took one look at the biscuits, shrugged and then devoured them quickly. She then glugged the water down, turned off the TV and started doing press-ups on the floor. She's been doing that intermittently throughout the day."

"Doesn't like TV then I guess."

"Evidently."

Caroline was interrupted by a loud noise coming from Mr Robot's room. He appeared to be annoyed by someone who had scored in the rugby match. Caroline and Ford looked at each other briefly for a moment and then laughed. It took about a minute for each of them to calm down.

"Dinner time was interesting" Caroline continued after she had caught her breath "it was like they hadn't eaten a meal in years. Never thought people could get so excited by a lasagne."

"Anything else of note?" asked Ford.

"None of them seem too shy about using the bathroom in front of the mirror. I suspect they must be used to some sort of communal living. Either that or nudity is commonplace."

"I could live with a world like that."

Caroline felt herself blush at that comment. Ford always had such as effect on her and it was really beginning to irritate her. Ford seemed to notice that she was flushing.

"So are we just going to watch them forever?" he quickly added

"I want to get some of them into a room and perform some language tests. I want Brunette and Legs in the language rooms tomorrow. I'm worried about Brunette so I'm hoping some friendly interaction will reassure her that we aren't here to butcher her. Brunette and Legs also seem the meekest. I'd rather use the other three for questions."

They both turned back to the windows as Brunette sat up in her bed. She breathed on the glass and drew a symbol. She seemed to stare at her reflection for a while and then settled back under the covers.

Blue eyes was laid out on his back with his arms behind his head, he seemed to be deep in thought. Caroline wondered if he was thinking about Blondie and the two children from the picture. Blondie, meanwhile, was just finishing another bout of press-ups. She wiped the sweat off her forehead and then removed her sweaty t-shirt revealing her cropped sports top underneath.

"What are those marks?" Ford asked frowning. There were faint zigzagging lines going down Blondie's back starting from her shoulder blades and going all the way down to the top of her slacks.

"They're scars. Like I said before she and Blue Eyes both show signs of having been tortured at some point."

"Right." Ford said pausing for a moment. "I have to say Caroline, I'm not sure I'm fully prepared for why these aliens are here."

"Neither am I."

*********************************************************************

The guests had spent their first night in their "rooms" and the teams of scientist were again watching their every move. Caroline walked into the room and felt a little saddened by it all. She hoped that they would not be treated like guinea-pigs forever; there was so much she wanted to find out and exchange with them.

Caroline watched as Brunette was gently taken from her room by armed guards. She put up a slight struggle at first but soon gave up. She was led to a bright room containing a table, two chairs and a computer. There was a one way mirror on the wall. Caroline watched from the other side of the mirror as a soldier gestured to Brunette to take a seat, which she did so. A scientist then entered the room and pressed some buttons on the computer.

The scientist turned towards Brunette holding up a card with a picture of a ball on it. He then pointed to the picture and said "ball." He then gestured to Brunette. She seemed to get the idea of the test quickly and said what Caroline thought to be the word ball in her language. Either that or she was telling the man where to go shove his picture card. The computer made some noises and seemed to take note of what she had said.

The scientist held up another card. Caroline could swear that she saw Brunette rolling her eyes. It was going to be a long couple of days for them both.

*********************************************************************

Ford was heavily asleep when he was awoken abruptly by his mobile ringing.

"What?" He groaned answering the phone.

"Major we need you down at the base immediately, we have a situation" said a voice down the phone. Ford recognised the voice immediately to be General Howell.

"Yes Sir, right away Sir."

It took 15 minutes for Ford to get himself out of bed and down to the base. His dark hair was all over the place and he had lines under his eyes.

"What's going on Private?" He said to a soldier standing by the Generals' office.

"I'm not sure sir, but lots of people were woken up."

Ford walked into the General's office and saluted.

"At ease Major."

Ford relaxed as Howell stood up and walked about the room.

"The US sent us a series of images that were taken last night from one of their satellites" Howell said as he tossed a large photograph onto the top of his desk.

Ford looked at the image and frowned.

"Is that what I think it might be?" he asked.

"What do you think it is Major?"

"Looks like a ship, a fucking big ship" said Ford "excusing my language sir."

Howell shook his hand to indicate that no offence was taken "I had the same reaction. I mean look at the fucking thing it's massive. Much bigger than any vessel we have ever designed."

Ford looked at another picture "You can see another vessel like the one that crashed, really puts the scale of the bigger ship into perspective. It looks like it has some sort of landing strip on each side. Also looks like it has some sort of heavy armour covering it."

"Don't forget the parts that look like they could be gun turrets" added Howell. He threw another image onto the desk. It was a close-up shot of the ship showing some wording on the side.

"About twenty minutes after these pictures were taken it disappeared."

"Disappeared?"

"Completely, the satellite couldn't find it again. It was like it was there one minute and gone the next."

"Well let's hope they're not too pissed off that their people are missing."

"Hmmm" was all Howell said in response.

Ford picked up the picture of the close-up again and frowned. He suddenly had a very bad feeling about the future. The lettering on the side of the ship was screaming out at him but he didn't know what it meant.

Ford found himself stroking his hand slowly over the word... _P E G A S U S._


	8. The Morning After

Chapter 7

Kara was disappointed to wake up alone after her night with Lee. Unfortunately having the CAG step out of your bunk in the morning would be just as obvious as a neon sign pointing at her rack. Kara didn't plan on having to answer anybody's questions about what had happened between them. She didn't even plan to talk to Lee about it.

Lee had snuck out at about 0300 hours and had gone back to his own rack. Being the CAG he was often collapsing into his bunk late so it shouldn't have raised any suspicions.

The bunkroom was busy with pilots getting ready for the day and Kara was getting ready for her shift at 0900 hours. She had finally got her tired body into the constricting flightsuit when she turned to face the room. Her stomach leapt as she came into eye contact with Lee, who was attempting to polish his boots.

"So who did you have in your rack last night Starbuck?" Duck called across the room causing Kara to break off eye contact. Lee also looked away from her quickly in an attempt to look casual.

"Come on Starbuck who's your latest conquest" laughed Duck.

"That's enough Clelland" Lee snapped.

Duck held up his hands and stepped out of the hatch backwards with a smile on his face. Lee shook his head at Duck's antics and carried on buffing his boots attempting not to look in Kara's direction again.

The room went eerily silent as Kara searched through her locker for a hair band, when the worlds had ended her hair was short so she had a limited supply. It was always a frantic search in the mornings to find one.

Kara found herself wondering, as she searched, if everyone had left the room except for her and Lee. She found herself starting to panic slightly. If they were alone Lee would undoubtedly want to talk about what had happened and that was conversation she really was not ready for yet. Finally she found what she was looking for at the bottom of her locker and pulled her hair into a tight ponytail. She tried to shake away her thoughts about Lee's proximity as she looked at herself in the mirror.

The answer to her question was answered when she felt Lee's presence right behind her. She gasped as he kissed her lightly at the base of her ear making the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.

"You're going to be late lieutenant" he whispered into her ear and then walked out of the bunk room leaving Kara breathing deeply. If she didn't get herself together soon she really would be late. She slammed shut her locker and zipped up her flightsuit.

She rushed out of the bunkroom determined to get through the day without letting her thoughts of Lee take over mind.

*********************************************************************

Kara had just made it to the Ready Room in time since Lee had decided to take a detour on his way. Kara wondered if he had done it on purpose, to give her enough time to arrive and sit in her normal chair.

Kara found herself fading out during the whole morning briefing as she remembered the feel of Lee's lips kissing along her jaw, the gentle but firm way he moved inside of her. Her mind flashed back to being on the table encompassing him with her legs and the way he made her feel as the orgasms shocked through her.

"Starbuck!"

"Huh?"

The voice from her daydream brought Kara crashing back to the present. She sat up straight suddenly in an attempt to look alert.

"Late night Starbuck or is there another reason why you are half asleep during my briefing?" Lee asked sternly. All eyes in the room were staring at her and she could hear the faint sound of laughter.

"Oh you know me sir" Kara responded with a cheeky smile on her face "nothing like having a man between my thighs to keep me awake."

The smirks around the room increased as Lee looked up dangerously at her. All Kara could do was hold the smile spread across her face.

"As I was saying_ lieutenant,_" Lee said, attempting to keep his body under control. "As of last night we are running with one less pilot, permanently. Palladino was arrested after trying to take out his issues on the XO and his wife."

The pilots all looked shocked as they tried to take in the news that one of their own had tried to do what all of them had only dreamt about.

"Palladino has been taken permanently off rotation and taken to the Astral Queen." Lee continued. "Thanks to him and Kat being grounded for another week, all of us will have to take up the slack. Starbuck, as you seem to be _so_ up to date that you feel you can switch off during my briefing, you have volunteered to take the first six hour CAP."

"Frak" Kara muttered under her breath.

"As of today _all _pilots will take it in turns to run double CAPs this week, no arguments. Duck your double shift starts at 0300."

Kara heard Duck mumble a few words behind her. She had felt a mixture of lust and rage towards Lee as he had grilled her ass in front of everyone. He had put her down for the first double CAP but that did not stop her wanting to just grab him and suck on his bottom lip. The rest of the briefing dragged by with the usual monotony they had all come to expect. Finally they were all dismissed.

Kara stayed in her seat until it was only her and Lee remaining. He looked up at her as she slowly stood up, giving him a long gaze and then started to walk out of the room. She was stopped suddenly by Lee firmly grabbing her arm and spinning her round.

They stood for a moment face to face. This was the moment that Kara was sort of dreading, the talk. She knew it was inevitable that Lee would start to over-analyse what had happened. That she would have to start admitting to herself exactly what she felt for him.

Kara figured that her traditional way of facing a hangover was to keep drinking…

She threw her hand round Lee's neck suddenly and planted a strong kiss on his lips. Lee reacted immediately stroking his hands up her back, deepening the kiss. They both knew that they were treading dangerously making out in the Ready Room but they couldn't stop.

They continued to devour each other as they gradually moved further into the chairs.

"Gods… do you know… what you do to me… during briefings?" Lee gasped between kisses.

Kara didn't answer as she pushed Lee back into a chair and straddled him. They continued to kiss each other passionately regardless of how many fleet rules they were breaking.

"Kara," Lee said trying to stop the kiss "Kara… we have… to stop… your CAP starts in fifteen minutes."

Kara broke off the kiss pouting her lips in disappointment.

"Pity" she said as she stood up and walked out of the room with a strut in her step and a smile on her face.

Lee had a feeling he would need to make a private stop at the head for 5 minutes before he headed for the CIC.

*********************************************************************

Kara was five hours into her CAP when she started getting fidgety. She rolled her head as much as she could in her helmet and tried to readjust her position to ease some of the pressure on her bladder.

"You're getting quiet over their Starbuck" said Hotdog through the comm "not falling asleep again are you?"

"Frak off Constanza."

"Someone's grouchy today."

Kara ignored Hotdog as they passed by the Rising Star when suddenly her dradis flashed up four raiders closing fast towards the fleet.

"Frak" she said under her breath "Galactica this is Starbuck we have incoming, repeat we have four raiders bearing fast, moving to intercept."

Kara shifted the stick and flipped her viper towards the raiders with Hotdog firmly on her wing.

"Wilco Starbuck this is Galactica" said Dualla down the comm. "alert fighters are in the tubes now."

_This show will be over way before they get here _Kara thought. Frak, why did the cylons have to attack when she really needed to haul ass to the head she thought as she pushed her viper hard over to engage the cylons.

*********************************************************************

Lee had been talking to the chief on the flight deck when the alarms sounded. It had taken him less than twenty seconds to jump into his viper and secure his helmet. It was another two minutes before he felt the wonderful tug of the g-forces strike through his body as his viper was launched out of the tube.

"Galactica, Apollo, alert fighters moving to engage the raiders. We'll be with them in five minutes."

Lee cursed under his breath as he heard Kara through his comm shout out "frak! Galactica, Starbuck make that eight raiders, I repeat eight raiders. Four just jumped in out of nowhere."

Lee could hear the slight alarm in her voice. She could _and had_ taken out eight raiders single handed before, but he knew that was not a scenario she liked to test too often. The last time she was that outnumbered she ended up crashing on a moon and frakking her knee up.

*********************************************************************

"Frak" Kara cursed again. Where the frak had the other four raiders come from? It was like they knew they were here already, or they had just gotten lucky. She pulled hard on the stick causing her viper to turn sharply lining up a raider in front of her sights. She pulled the trigger blowing the raider up, spreading debris in all directions.

"Splash one!"

She heard Hotdog whoop in her ear as an explosion flashed to the side of her vision.

"Make that splash two" he yelled.

"Watch out Hotdog you have a raider on your six bearing fast." Kara looped round her viper quickly heading straight on with Hotdog's viper. Hotdog broke sharply leaving the raider in Kara's sights.

"That's another one Galactica" she said as she flew through the remains of the fallen raider. She quickly spun her viper on its axis taking out another raider.

"Make that four" she said gleefully. Her glee was short lived however as she saw the bullet soar past her canopy.

"Frak, frak, frak" Kara said to herself as she spun her viper away from the closing raider.

"Hold on Starbuck I'm on him" said Hotdog turning to engage the raider shadowing her. Hotdog cursed as he had to break off his attack as another raider shot across his six. "Frak! Galactica, Hotdog, where the frak are the alert fighters?"

"They're on route to you now Hotdog" said Dualla as calmly as she could over the comm.

"Frak on route we need support now." Hotdog yelled dodging more bullets across his hull.

"Stay with me Hotdog" said Kara relatively calmly. Inwardly she was cursing the raider she couldn't shake away. She burst through the raiders taking out the unlucky one that flew directly in her path. "That should even the numbers more, splash five Galactica."

Again Kara's victory was short lived as the raider on her six glanced a blow off her underside making her viper shake.

"Frakker, I just got that fixed" she said spinning her viper again.

*********************************************************************

Lee willed his viper to go faster as he saw the raider following hotly on Kara's heels. He held his breath momentarily as he saw her viper take a hit, exhaling as the blow didn't stop the flow of her flying.

Lee soared towards the attacking raider with his guns blaring taking out the raider in a matter of seconds.

"Starbuck, Apollo your six is clear" he said.

"Thanks Apollo. I think that frakker wanted to spoil the Chief's hard work."

Lee spun to engage the remaining two raiders as the alert fighters caught up with him.

"Seven raiders down" said Lee as one of the alert fighters took out the raider shadowing Hotdog. Lee quickly took care of the eighth.

"Galactica to all fighters" Dualla's voice said over the comm "all vipers head for home, repeat all vipers head for home."

"You heard that pilots" said Lee "all vipers, combat landings and prepare for a jump."

*********************************************************************

Kara privately hoped that her undercarriage had not been damaged by the raider as she flew her viper hard into the pod and landed with a sharp jolt. She let out a sigh of relief as the undercarriage held firm.

Kara felt the pod retracting slowly making ready for a jump. She relaxed her head back in her seat rolling her head to the side. She saw Lee's mark VII viper next to her. He was smiling at her and obviously looked relieved.

"Adding some more scorch marks to the paint work Starbuck?" he said chuckling. Kara smiled and gave him a small wink. She leaned back in her viper and closed her eyes as she felt the pull of the FTL hit her stomach.

The worse thing about combat landings was the wait afterwards, with each bird waiting its turn to be brought back into the hanger. Kara's viper was finally pulled in closely followed by Lee's.

"What the frak did you do to my bird Lieutenant?" said Tyrol as Kara's canopy pulled back and she removed her helmet. Kara launched herself down the steps to examine the damage. She raised her eyebrows slightly as she examined the dark black lines scorched across the belly meeting at a hole near the tip of the nose.

"Frakker got me worse than I thought" she said with a straight face.

"You're lucky your landing gear didn't fail or blow up into little pieces" said Tyrol.

"Fix her up good Chief" Kara said with a forced grin whilst she removed her gloves.

Kara dashed away quickly from the deck.

"Where's the fire Starbuck?" asked Lee from behind her.

Kara spun her head round "in my bladder _Captain_" she said and then sped up the ladder leading away from the deck. Lee laughed at her quick retreat.

*********************************************************************

Kara was relieved that her six hour CAP had been rudely interrupted by the cylons. She now had an hour before she was back on alert status for three hours followed by a further three hours of nugget classes.

She grabbed a snack from the Mess and then made her way to lifestation. She had an important visit to make.

Lifestation was quiet when she entered. Fortunately there had been no injuries or fatalities from the last attack.

Kara saw Kat sit up from one of the beds as she passed through. Kara attempted to ignore her but she found herself sighing heavily as Kat called out her name.

Kara rubbed her hand to her eyes as she turned to face the bed.

"What do you want Katraine?"

"I heard it was eight against two for a while, no losses for us" Kat said in small voice.

"Yeah, with no help from you."

"I didn't mean for this to happen, Starbuck."

"Maybe not, but you were too damn proud to ask for help. You arrogantly thought you could handle it all by yourself by shoving stims down your throat."

"It was a mistake."

"You nearly ended up smeared across the deck. Now we all have to pick up your slack."

"I, I'm sorry" Kat said meekly.

Kara hesitated; she really couldn't be frakked to argue about this now.

"Save it for the Commander Kat" she said walking away.

Kara ignored Kat's cries as she walked towards a curtained off area surrounded by marines. Helo appeared from around the curtain looking exhausted.

"How's Sharon?" Kara asked softly as Helo walked up to her.

"Better" he responded.

"And the baby?"

Helo smiled "she's going to be okay. Cottle managed to save her."

Kara gave him a small but genuine pat on his arm.

"I don't think it fully registered with me before, being a father" said Helo "but when I thought I had lost them I felt empty. I have no idea what is going to happen in the next seven and a half months but I do know that I really want to be a father to my little girl."

"I have to get back, I'm still on shift" was all Kara could say in response to Helo. She was glad that the baby was okay, regardless of who the mother was. No kid deserved alienation or abandonment just because of who it was born to. The baby had no choice of who its mother was, she could relate to that.

"I'll catch you later this evening. Thanks for coming Kara." Helo said.

Kara smiled quickly and headed out of the lifestation there was some really boring paperwork waiting for her in the Ready room.

*********************************************************************

D'Anna cursed to herself. She had been so close to getting the film footage to her people but the raiders had all been destroyed before she had the chance. She did not worry about it too much though. There would be plenty of time.

The fleet had not detected the message she had managed to send to the raiders before the last one was destroyed. The message simply called for more frequent attacks until the footage could be sent.

D'Anna was re-watching the secret footage she had taken in lifestation. The child of Valarii and Agathon was still alive. It was a miracle a sign of things to come.

She sighed as she begun the agonising edit of all the footage. The film was due to be shown in three days time, if it was approved by the President and the Commander. The footage that would be sent to the cylons would be unedited.

*********************************************************************

Kara had just dismissed her class of nuggets when Lee came into the Ready room.

Kara still did not have the energy to have a discussion with Lee regardless of how much she was longing for his touch. She was a still a little shaken by the near miss from the cylons. All she wanted was for Lee to take her to her bunk and make her forget what had happened during her gruelling day.

"Not here," she said before Lee could say anything "everyone is in the Rec room playing triad so the bunk room will be empty."

Lee didn't need asking twice for that invitation. He walked in step beside her as she stalked out of the room.

"That was a close one today" Lee said, breaking the awkward silence as they neared the bunkroom.

"No more than usual."

"You took on eight raiders with two vipers Kara, you're lucky you are both still breathing at all."

"I really don't want to think about the chances. They blew up and we survived, that's the end of it."

They entered the bunkroom, which as Kara had predicted was empty.

"Kara we need to talk about what happened yesterday"

Kara knew this was coming. As much as she had enjoyed and thought about the wonderful few hours they had spent together she couldn't fathom at the moment exactly what she felt for him. She knew she felt something strong but she was never the sort of girl to declare that she was in love. Kara had done that once before and the burns were still scalding her, blistering her skin.

Kara pushed Lee up against the hatch door kissing him deeply. He started to kiss her back passionately but after a minute he stopped.

"Kara…"

"Not now Lee, please, I can't talk about this now I'm too tired" Kara said as her mouth devoured his again "All I want to do is frak"

Lee wanted to do more than just frak her. He wanted to take things slower to find out exactly what was happening between them. He wanted to make love to her.

"Please, Lee" she whispered against his lips.

Kara's voice broke through Lee's resolve. He knew then that right now she really needed him. Lee remembered back to his vow on Kobol, that he would be whatever she needed him to be and right now she needed him inside of her. To frak her senseless in order to make her forget what had happened today.

He grabbed Kara's hand softly and guided her to her rack. He pushed her suddenly up against the ladder of the rack making her gasp and kissed her firmly. He only broke off the kiss so he could take off her uniform jacket and lift her tanks over her head.

Kara lay down on her bunk as Lee settled in above her, kissing and nipping at her neck softly and making her moan.

Lee was going to make sure that the only thing Kara could remember tonight was his name as she screamed out for more.


	9. Inevitability

Chapter 8

The hangar deck was busy as normal as Kara's bird was brought in from her training session with the nuggets. Deckhands rushed around directing the viper slowly into its resting spot at the front of the squadron. Her canopy pulled back as she ripped off her helmet, her matted hair falling out in parts of its ponytail.

"Where the frak is the Chief?" Kara shouted out as she passed her helmet to the nearest deckhand.

"He walked away from the deck for a few minutes Sir" said Seelix from the bottom of the viper's ladder.

"Well get him the frak here, I told him to fix the damage to my bird. The landing gear nearly gave way when I came in."

Kara's onslaught of the deckhands was interrupted by Lee stalking across the hangar.

"Would you mind telling me what sort of stunt you were trying to pull out their Starbuck!" He yelled as he walked up to the viper's ladder.

"I was teaching the nuggets how to do some manoeuvres."

"And since when did we teach cadets, who haven't passed basic flight yet, complex combat tactics?"

"Since the cylons have been on our ass nearly every day" Kara said as she unclamped her neck collar and tossed it to another deckhand. She stalked down the ladder and came face to face with Lee at the bottom. "We have no time to hold the cadets' hands through basic flight. They need to learn how to fight or they'll get blown out of the sky."

Kara began to storm away from the deck, scattering the crew in her wake. Lee walked firmly behind her with his clipboard in his hand as people looked on in awe at the very public argument between CAG and flight instructor. Kara and Lee were known for arguing but this week it had seemed endless, followed usually by them both storming out of the hangar deck.

Their angry voices echoed throughout as they walked out of deck and down the short corridor to towards the chief's office. The deckhands went back to the work, knowing better than to get involved in the argument.

"What is the point of teaching them combat when they don't even know how to steer straight yet?" Lee continued angrily as he followed Kara down the corridor.

"I'm the flight instructor remember and I think they're ready."

"And I'm the CAG and I'm responsible for _your_ actions."

"Why are we even discussing this? I taught them a few manoeuvres so frakking what?"

They entered Chief's office, which was empty the only sound being the distillery humming in the corner. Lee slammed the door shut as Kara started laughing closely followed by Lee.

"I can't believe they bought that crap" laughed out Kara.

Lee walked up to Kara his gaze focused on her smiling lips and cupped her face gently with his hand. The lips met tenderly in an amorous kiss, their tongues slowly caressing. Lee reached his hand around the back of Kara's head pulling out her ponytail causing her hair to cascade down her neck.

Lee unclipped the straps on Kara's flightsuit, unzipped it to the waist and pulled it down as she lifted her arms out.

"Think we scared off everyone for a while?" Kara asked as they paused from kissing.

"What do you have in mind?" Lee asked with a smile. Kara did not answer his question instead she just began slowly kissing him again and then grabbed at Lee's uniform trousers. She unfastened the button gradually as she kissed him and then pulled down the zipper.

Lee gasped as she reached her hand into his trousers and cupped him with her hand. He was already hard from kissing her.

"Here?" Lee asked softly.

Kara responded with a gentle nip to the side of his jaw. Lee clutched her flightsuit and slowly pulled it down until slid smoothly over the curve of her hips and thighs. He placed small kisses on her chest, through her tanks, kissing his way down until he met her briefs. He then kissed her lightly on her nub.

"Gods Lee" she gasped pulling him up by his uniform collar and kissing him again.

She placed her hands at the top of his trousers and underwear lowering them until he was released. Lee unbuttoned his tunic rapidly and pulled Kara firmly to his chest. He devoured her mouth for a moment and then spun her around.

"Yes" whispered Kara as Lee encompassed her waist and slowly caressed her. She felt the waves of ecstasy start to build from within.

Lee placed his chin on her shoulder, nestling himself against her left cheek as Kara spread her legs as far as they could within the constraints of her flightsuit. She lifted her ankles slightly as Lee pulled her briefs aside and guided himself inside of her. Kara arched her back and encircled her left arm around his neck holding the back of Lee's head tenderly.

They began a slow and gentle rhythm perfectly complementing each other as Lee continued to stroke her. Their breathing deepened gradually as their rhythm increased, pushing Lee over the edge.

"Gods Kara" Lee gasped into her ear as his breathing came back under control.

"We've got to get back before people come looking for us" Kara whispered back.

The both pulled away from each other reluctantly. Lee cleaned himself off as best he could as Kara pulled her flightsuit over her hips and tied the sleeves around her waist.

"Meet me at the Mess hall at 1900?" Kara asked as she tied her hair back up.

"Sure, I've got a meeting with the President at 2100 hours so we'll have to make it quick"

"I'm sure I can manage that" Kara said with a smile.

They kissed briefly again before Kara opened the hatch carefully and snuck out as discreetly as possible. Lee picked up the clipboard he had tossed on the floor and leafed through it for a few minutes before he left the office.

He quietly closed the hatch behind him leaving the room silent apart from the hum of distillery. It was another few minutes before a shuffling noise echoed through the room.

Sometimes Chief Tyrol really regretted avoiding the deck crew by hiding in the corner of his office.

*********************************************************************

It had been a week since the first passionate night they had spent together. Despite some trepidation on Kara's part they had continued to meet frequently, stealing kisses when no-one was around. They had avoided triad games in the rec room so that they could take advantage of the bunk room being empty. They had shared a rack three more times at night, closely entwined together.

Despite all of the time they spent together Lee had not broached the subject of what was going on between them. He had considered asking her on a number of occasions but thought better of it. So they just went on as they were. The only time they were really apart was when one of them was on CAP and even then they both listened to each other over the comm system.

Even though they had both been careful not to expose what was happening the gossip was still circulating around the ship. Duck had begun a poll to bet on who had shared Kara's rack that first night. Lee seemed to the most popular suspect but it was not taken too seriously, at least three people had voted for Tigh.

*********************************************************************

Kara was on alert status until 2000 so she holed herself up in the Ready room. The cylons had been attacking them frequently throughout the week.

The room was quiet enough so she could complete her nugget evaluations. She knew that Lee was on shift in the CIC until 1800, which he always found incessantly boring. She could kill a few hours before meeting up with him.

Kara had been relieved, when the reporter's footage had been broadcast to the entire fleet, that she was only in a couple of clips. She had, however, been annoyed that Kat's breakdown seemed to be the focus of a lot of the film.

Kara relaxed into one of the chairs and scribbled endlessly through the evaluations. They were as ready as they could be to begin combat training she thought. A few would even make fair pilots if they didn't get blown up first.

"Hey Starbuck."

Kara spun her head round and saw Karl had entered the room. He looked tired and unshaven, dressed in slacks which Kara was certain he had been wearing all week.

"Hey, you okay? Has something happened to Sharon?"

"She's fine now and so is the baby."

Karl sat in the chair next to Kara and leant his head backwards.

"They took her back to the brig today, chained her up like a dog" he added "You should've seen the looks people gave her as she walked through the ship. The things they said."

"Helo the cylons are responsible for killing billions of people, there isn't a person here who didn't lose somebody. Did you really expect people to welcome her with open arms?"

"She isn't like the others."

"I know that, I really do, but I'm not sure if I fully trust her."

Karl didn't respond he just closed his eyes and breathed heavily. They both sat there in silence for a few minutes before Karl finally spoke.

"Am I a complete idiot for falling in love with a machine?"

"I wouldn't say you were a _complete _idiot these things just happen sometimes" said Kara. They paused silently again for a few minutes before Kara added "I'm frakking the CAG."

Karl made a noise and then started coughing involuntarily making Kara smile. Kara didn't know why she told him, for some reason she just felt like she needed to.

"You're what?" He spluttered "As in? No frakking way."

Kara let out a small laugh and then shrugged "it just happened and I'm not going to say any more about it so don't ask."

"Just be careful Kara"

"Like you were with Sharon?"

"Funny Kara, very funny. Hey look I've got to grab a shower before my shifts starts. We'll talk about this later."

"No we won't and if you tell anyone I'll hunt you down."

Karl held his hands up in surrender as he walked out of the room leaving Kara still sitting in her chair smiling. She was glad Helo was back.

*********************************************************************

It was 1900 hours when Kara and Lee met on their way to the mess hall. They knew that they had to act like they had met up by accident not design. They were queuing for the slop masquerading as dinner when Dualla came walking over.

"Hi Lee" she said with a smile making Kara roll her eyes.

"Er, hi Dee" Lee replied. He really hoped that she didn't try to muscle her way into sitting with him again.

"Are you lost Dee?" Interrupted Kara before Dualla had a chance to continue.

"Sorry?" Dualla said as she finally acknowledged that Kara was there.

"I said are you lost? You seem to have walked into the wrong mess hall, this is for officers only. The enlisted mess is down the hall."

"I..." Dee stuttered.

"Do I have to make it an order petty officer?"

"No Sir!" Dualla saluted Kara and then stormed out of the room. Kara couldn't help but laugh.

"I'm sorry I couldn't resist" she giggled. Lee looked at her disapprovingly.

"What? Oh come on you have to admit she's irritating"

Lee didn't want to admit that Kara was right. Dualla's relentless pursuit of him had been grating at him. She had a habit of interrupting the precious free moments he had in an attempt to be alone with him. He may have been interested if the circumstances were different, she was an attractive and nice woman, but all he could think about was being with Kara.

"Hey want to forget this slop and go find somewhere else?" Kara whispered.

Lee nodded and they discreetly walked out of the mess hall and headed for the bunkroom. Unfortunately it was full of pilots changing out of their flightsuits from the second shift. Kara had silently cursed and then headed in another direction. They knew they couldn't risk sneaking down to the Chief's office again.

*********************************************************************

They ended up in the observation room after Lee remembered that he knew the code to the door. Kara was still in her flightsuit as she was on alert status until 2000 hours. They settled into one of the sofas and curled up together exchanging passionate kisses. They stayed that way as the minutes ticked by too quickly.

"So are you going to join me in my rack tonight?" Kara asked when they paused from kissing.

"Erm… sure" sighed Lee.

"You don't have to" Kara shrugged. It wasn't the response she wanted or expected. "What's up Lee?"

"What are we doing Kara?"

There it was, the inevitable question. She knew it was coming at some point. Why did he have to do it when they were in the observation lounge kissing the frak out of each other?

"We're having fun Lee"

"Right…"

"Are you not having fun then? Is that what this is about?" Kara asked exasperatedly.

"Oh I'm having fun, no doubt about that. It's just…"

"What?"

"All this sneaking around and quick fraks. It's great but, I don't know, can't I take you out for dinner first for once?" Lee knew Kara wasn't going to be very receptive to this conversation but it had been eating away at him day by day. He loved the time they spent together but he wanted more, he wanted her completely.

"If you wanted to stay in the mess hall you should have said" said Kara standing up in frustration. She really did not understand what Lee was trying to say.

"That's not what I mean. I don't want to just meet up and frak, I want to spend some time with you, take you out to dinner."

Kara was completely taken aback. She had expected the "talk" but she didn't expect Lee to be so explicit about what he wanted from her.

"Are you asking me out on a date Adama?"

"Yeah I guess I am."

"Lee… "

"Oh frak!" Lee shouted out and looked at his watch "frak frak frak."

"What?"

"It's 2100 I'm supposed to be with the President, frak!"

Lee flew out of the chair and smartened up his uniform quickly. He couldn't believe that he had been so wrapped up with Kara he had forgotten. It took them 20 seconds to get out of the room and race down to the hangar deck to see if the raptor was still waiting, it wasn't.

"Sorry Sir Racetrack couldn't wait. She's gone to dock with Cloud Nine to collect Quorum members" said Tyrol.

"Then I need a Raptor asap chief."

"You know the rules sir I can't let you out there alone without a flightsuit."

"Frak, come on chief."

"No can do sir the XO will have my ass on a plate."

Le couldn't believe he was so late for this meeting. He was never late for anything especially for Roslin. Kara came walking across the deck looking concerned. Lee and Tyrol turned to look at her.

"What if Starbuck flies the raptor?" Lee asked Tyrol.

Tyrol sighed, he hated breaking the rules but Lee looked so desperate. The longer the two of them were there the more it brought back flashes of what he had unfortunately witnessed earlier.

"Okay Apollo, but only this one time. You know we have to clear with the CIC all flights and Starbuck isn't supposed to be out delivering late CAGs to Colonial One."

"I owe you one Chief" Lee said as he ran into the nearest Raptor with Kara following closely behind.

"I'm now a delivery pilot?" Kara joked as she sat in the pilots chair and began to power up.

*********************************************************************

After a few minutes Kara was powering the raptor out of the landing pod and heading for Colonial One, which was about fifteen minutes away. The Chief had not called through to the CIC for clearance so they wouldn't know about the unscheduled launch.

The chief knew that the CIC would still track them on dradis.

"So where are you going to take me?" Kara asked as their raptor cleared the pod.

"What do you mean?" Lee responded from the rear of the raptor.

"On our date, where are you going to take me?"

Lee was stunned; he had no idea that Kara would actually contemplate the suggestion of going on a date with him.

"Cloud Nine would be too public so I guess the Rising Star."

"The Rising Star, nice. Now all we need is some R&R time, which will never happen."

"When we have more pilots I'll make sure we are one of the first to get some down time."

Lee walked up to the front of the raptor and leaned between the chairs. They smiled briefly at each other before Kara turned back to concentrate on flying.

If they knew now what was about to happen next then they would have savoured the moment, cherishing the time they had together.

The raptor was nearing Colonial One when the cylons came, jumping right on top of the fleet without mercy.

Kara didn't have time to react before the raider collided sharply with their raptor, knocking out the transponder, causing them to vanish from the dradis. The raptor lurched violently to the side causing Lee to fly off balance into the wall. He crumpled to the floor, consciousness leaving him.

"Frak! Lee!" Kara cried out as she struggled to bring the raptor under control.

But it was too late.

Another raider fired on them, knocking the power out of the raptor. There was nothing Kara could do; the ship had bled to death. There was no life left in her to bring back.

"Galactica this is Starbuck, Galactica do you copy?"

But there was no response.

The Galactica couldn't hear her. With no communication system, no power and the sound of an oxygen leak somewhere Kara had nothing to do but await the inevitable. She launched herself out of her chair and went into the back of the raptor. She did not want to see the kill shot coming. She did not want to know who it was that had defeated her.

"Lee" she cried out as she went to his side and lifted his head. He was out cold with a nasty gash on his head.

"Lee, come on wake up, please" the tears were welling up in her eyes "Lee I don't want to face this alone."

"Kara?" Lee said weakly as he came round "what the frak happened?"

"We're dead in the water. Hey don't get up."

But Lee didn't listen. He stood wearily using Kara as a support. He knew immediately from the silence of the ship that they didn't have a hope of getting themselves out of the situation. He wondered if the Galactica even knew if they were out here.

They both looked on in silence as they saw the fleet jumping away one by one. A tear streaked down Kara's face as they watched the last ship, the Galactica, stop firing on the raiders and then disappear in a flash of light.

They were alone.

Lee reached out and took Kara's hand in his. He then turned to her, looking in her eyes warmly and wiped away the tear. They both knew that it was the last moment they would have in this life, but they didn't need words to know what they felt about each other.

But the kill shot never came.

After a few minutes Kara and Lee began to realise that they were not being shot down. Out of the corner of their eye they saw the two baseships blink into existence. They knew that the cylons wanted them alive.

Fear began to take over Kara's mind; she couldn't let them take her again. She was about to grab her sidearm when they felt the crash from the rear of the raptor. Then there was a sharp sound that pierced through the hull. The weapon the cylons were using was something they had not seen before. Before they had time to think they smelt something strange then the blackness enveloped them both.

*********************************************************************

The raptor was towed slowly into the belly of the Baseship and into what the cylons considered to be a landing area. The centurions circled the ship with their guns raised as a number of the humanoid cylons entered the room.

"This is a bad idea. The humans will inevitably come looking for their people" said one of the sixes.

"I agree. It is in their nature" said another six "we do not need any prisoners."

"They may be useful. We need to know where the humans are going" added a Sharon model.

The cylons watched as the centurions broke open the hatch to the raptor revealing the inside of the ship. They looked on at the two occupants slumped inside. The man was on his back in his military uniform. The woman was next to him on her side wearing a flightsuit.

Leoben walked into the raptor a conniving smile spreading over his face.

"This is destiny. I saw that she would come back to me" he said.

"This is a bad idea" said Doral "the Commander will never stop searching for his son."

"These two are important. They were brought to us for a reason" Leoben said creepily.

"I have to say I agree. Even though they will come looking for them, these two are too important to kill." added one of the six models.

"I want Kara with me" said Leoben.

"No" said Cavil "she's not here to be your pet. We need information, the sixes will handle that."

The cylons stood aside and watched as the centurions slowly dragged the prisoners away to their fate.

**AN: Yes, I know I'm evil ;-)**


	10. Missing

**AN: I agonised for ages how I was going to write this part so I hope you enjoy it!! Thank you all again for your lovely reviews x**

Chapter Nine

The CIC came alive with activity when the cylons came. It had been late in the evening so they were running on the minimal night-shift crew. It did not take long for Adama to arrive after throwing on his uniform.

"Where the frak did they come from" he growled.

"They just jumped right on top of us sir" said Gaeta who was frantically spooling up the FTL drive.

"Send word throughout the fleet for an emergency jump."

"The word has already been sent sir, all vessels are spooling up."

"Good now bring in the CAP and have the Galactica provide covering fire for the fleet."

Adama looked up at the dradis with concern. He knew that if they did not jump out of there as soon as possible then their losses would be high, too high. There were at least 15 raiders showing up on dradis, enough to cause a lot of destruction.

"This is weird sir, we're not getting any reports of any ships being fired upon" called out a petty officer manning the comm system.

"Well I don't plan to wait around to find out if they will" said Tigh who had just run into the CIC.

"First ships are away sir" said Gaeta as he spun around from the dradis consol.

The CIC watched as each ship jumped away one by one until it was only the Galactica left.

"All ships have jumped sir" said Gaeta.

"Then get us the frak out of here" Tigh said sternly.

They felt the pull of the FTL drive clench at their stomachs as the Galactica jumped away and joined the rest of the fleet.

"Sitrep" demanded Adama.

"All ships accounted for sir, no reports of any damage" said Petty Officer Callun.

"Thank the Gods" said Tigh "we got lucky this time."

Adama was about to nod in agreement when Gaeta informed them that they had a call coming through from Tyrol.

"Put him through" said Adama.

"Sir," came Tyrol's panicked voice over the comm. "Captain Adama left on a raptor shortly before the attack. He was headed for Colonial One. I've just done an inventory of the ships that came in; his ship wasn't one of them."

Adama's heart lurched in his chest and began to beat faster; he had known that something did not feel right about the attack.

"Gaeta, contact all ships I want to know where he landed, now" he said, attempting to keep the concern out of his voice.

Gaeta spoke into his headset.

"All ships do you have Captain Adama aboard, I repeat do you have Captain Adama aboard, we are missing a raptor do you have her?" In his head Gaeta knew that it was a fruitless task, there had been no raptor on dradis when they set condition one throughout the ship. The captain was already lost. He hoped in his heart that he was wrong.

The few minutes it took to contact all of the ships were the longest of Adama's life. He waited in agony as ship after ship stated that they had not picked up a raptor.

His world ended when the captain of Colonial One called in.

"Galactica this is Colonial One, we've been having communication problems, or we would have called in straight away. Some of our passengers have reported seeing one of your ships taking a hit and spinning out of control."

The CIC was eerily silent. No-one daring or wanting to speak. The look on Adama's face was unreadable, which concerned the dumbstruck Tigh. After a minute the sound of small sobs could be heard from various people around the room.

"Tyrol we have a raptor missing" said Tigh breaking the silence. "I want all remaining raptors out there. Take it in turns to jump back until Apollo is found. We're not moving until we have full confirmation. Gaeta have the fleet ready to jump without us if the cylons come back."

"Yes sir" responded Gaeta and Tyrol.

"Chief?" asked Tigh after a moment. "Apollo wouldn't be out their in a raptor on his own, which pilot did we lose?"

After a small pause Tyrol answered in a solemn voice, "Starbuck sir."

The last of Adama's resolve crumbled, his knees gave way from underneath him and he fell to the deck in a heap.

"Get the frakking medics down here, now!" Tigh shouted as he ran to his friend's side. "Bill, stay with me, we'll find them."

But Adama couldn't respond as his arm gripped his chest.

*********************************************************************

As Adama was taken away by the medics the first raptors were being made ready to jump back. The whole ship was now awake despite the late hour as whisperings of their lost comrades echoed through the corridors.

Helo had been down in the brig with Sharon when he found out about his best friend. He ran to the deck and commandeered the nearest raptor along with Duck who had had just landed his viper. Their raptor was launched within minutes, meeting with Racetrack and Skulls.

It was only twenty minutes after Kara and Lee's disappearance that the first raptors jumped back to their previous co-ordinates.

It was only after another ten minutes when the raptors jumped back.

"Galactica, this is Duck do you copy?"

The question echoed throughout the CIC where the crew looked on at the dradis in trepidation. There were silent prayers to the Gods being said around the room for Starbuck to pull one of her retina-detaching moves and bring the raptor back home.

"We copy you Duck" said Tigh "What did you find?"

"Nothing sir, no cylons and no raptor."

"Any debris?"

"There were a few shards floating about but not enough to be a whole raptor."

"Come back to the Galactica to refuel. Helo I want you to co-ordinate multiple jumps back. I want that whole system searched, all nearby planets and moons, everything."

Tigh knew it was a risk to keep sending raptors back but it was what the old man would have ordered. Adama had once told him that he would never stop looking for Lee.

*********************************************************************

Colonial One was a bustle of activity as normal. They had heard news that the Galactica had lost a ship, but no details had been released yet. Roslin had been told by some of her passengers that they had seen a ship taking a nasty hit.

The order had come through for all ships to be ready to jump without the Galactica. Their current goal was to reach what was known as the Omega Sector within two weeks and Roslin knew that Adama would never deviate from this plan unless something was seriously wrong.

"Madam President?" Billy asked softly.

"Sorry?" Roslin said as she turned her towards him.

"You were a million miles away."

"I was thinking. Have we been able to get any news from the Galactica yet?"

"No, the Captain keeps calling them but everyone is getting the same response."

"Which is?"

"We are currently searching for a missing raptor, all Captains are to have there ships ready for an immediate jump without the Galactica."

Roslin turned her head away again in thought. There was definitely something wrong and she wanted to find out what it was.

"Billy, ask the Captain how long it will take to dock with the Galactica."

Roslin lost herself in deep thought as Billy left to go to the cockpit of the ship. She knew that the Galactica would raise hell if her ship docked during a crisis, but in her soul she knew she needed to be there.

A call on her internal phone broke through her reverie.

"Hello, Laura Roslin here" she said politely.

"Madam President this is the Captain. Do I understand correctly that you wish to dock with the Galactica?"

"That is correct. If they refuse tell them it is an order from the President of the Colonies."

"Will do Madam President."

*********************************************************************

"Their doing what!?!" Shouted Tigh angrily across the CIC.

"Colonial One is requesting to dock sir, on the orders of the President of the Colonies" answered Dualla who had now arrived in the CIC. She heard Tigh muttering under his breath as he thought of what to do.

"Tell the Chief to guide them in" he finally said in a gruff voice. "Gaeta where is the team of raptors?"

"Four raptors have jumped back sir. They've been gone fifteen minutes now. The Chief reports that we have two more raptors ready to launch."

"Have them launched asap. I'm going down to meet the _President_ and check on the old man."

Tigh turned and stormed out of the CIC. It was now about 2300 hours but the corridors were full of people rushing everywhere. Deckhands were running down to the hangar to get more raptors ready and pilots were heading to the ready room for an emergency meeting. A number of other people were just slumped against the walls, looking lost and upset.

It was during his walk down to the hangar when Tigh realised how much Kara and Lee had meant to the ship. He remembered well when Kara had crashed on the moon; the crew was solemn then and determined to find her. Now over half the crew was frantic to find them and the other half of the crew was despairing.

When he reached the docking entrance Roslin was already climbing down the ladder.

"Madam President for what do we owe the pleasure of your company?"

Roslin was not aloof to the sarcasm in Tigh's voice but decided not to give rise to it. What she really wanted to do was talk to Adama.

"Colonel Tigh, may I begin by extending my deepest sympathies for the loss of one of your ships" she began sincerely.

"We're sending search parties out for the raptor now, so far no success but we are optimistic."

Tigh didn't know why he said that they were optimistic. In his mind he knew that there was no hope of finding them alive. If they were alive Starbuck would have brought them back by now.

"I see" replied Roslin. She had a feeling that she had played out this scenario before. Of course the Galactica would search for any member of its crew, but she had not seen frantic searches like this one since Lieutenant Thrace had disappeared.

"Who was on the raptor Colonel?" Roslin asked, noticing straight away the solemn expression suddenly cross Tigh's face.

"Colonel?" She asked again, her voice turning to one of concern.

"Captain Adama and Lieutenant Thrace."

Roslin couldn't help the small gasp that escaped her lips. She remembered that Apollo had meant to be on Colonial One when the cylons attacked. He must have been on his way to see her.

"I'm so sorry to hear that" she said at last "if you require any assistance I will personally make sure that you have the full facilities of the fleet available."

"Thank you. At the moment we are searching their last known co-ordinates. We haven't found anything yet. They may have been able to jump away, in which case they may be trying to jump back."

"How is Bill?"

"He's in life-station. He… he collapsed in the CIC."

"Oh my gods" said Roslin as she put her hand to her mouth "can I see him please?"

Tigh gestured for Roslin to follow him down the corridor. As they walked Roslin was also taken aback by the atmosphere throughout the ship. If Captain Adama and Lieutenant Thrace were indeed dead then their loss would be felt for a long time.

When they entered the life-station they saw Adama straight away in one of the beds opposite the entrance. He looked ashen and there were wires and heart monitors surrounding him. Doc Cottle was standing by his bed studying a print-out of his heart rhythm and shaking his head. He looked up as Roslin approached the bed.

"Madam President" he said surprised "if you've come to talk to the Commander, forget it. I've knocked him out for the next few hours."

"What is wrong with him?"

"I'm still running tests but it looks like a mild heart attack. He's stable but needs to rest."

"Oh my gods."

"He should be fine as he's fairly fit and healthy even though he drinks a bit too much, he may have to give that up. I believe the attack was brought on by the stress of his son's death."

"_Alleged_ death" added Tigh.

Cottle didn't respond, he knew better than to hope for a miracle.

Roslin sat on the edge of Adama's bed and took his hand in hers. She then looked up at Tigh. "I will address the fleet about the situation and ask everyone for their assistance."

"I would rather not alert the fleet yet" said Tigh gruffly.

"Whether you like it or not, Colonel, the news will spread through this fleet like a plague. The knock-on effects of this will last a long time. We need to be open and honest with the fleet."

Roslin briefly stroked the top of Adama's head and then stood up.

"If you will excuse me gentlemen I will return to my ship and prepare to address the fleet first thing in the morning." Roslin smiled gently and then walked out of the life-station.

*********************************************************************

D'Anna Biers listened intently to the talk wireless from the confines of her quarters. The attack by her people the day before had been a complete success. She had managed to send the footage over a secure line to one of the raiders before her ship had jumped.

"Good morning everyone" she heard Roslin say over the wireless. "As you are no doubt aware there was another cylon attack late last evening. What is not widely known is that we are currently missing a ship containing two pilots."

This was news that D'Anna had not heard. She knew that if the ship was considered "missing" then it had not just been blown up. If it had blown up, Roslin would be sending out her condolences.

D'Anna knew that her people must have taken them for some reason.

"The Galactica would appreciate as much help from the fleet as possible" continued Roslin "are there any questions?"

"Yes Madam President" said an eager sounding male reporter. "How sure are we that these pilots are simply missing?"

"The pilots were left behind during the jump. No trace of them was found when another ship jumped back."

D'Anna could hear lots of mumblings over the wireless as the questions continued.

"Madam President" said another female reporter "there seems to be more to this then just missing pilots, who did we lose?"

"Unfortunately we're missing two of the most experienced viper pilots from Galactica. The Commander of the Air Group, Captain Adama and Galactica's top gun and flight instructor Lieutenant Thrace."

D'Anna smiled as she took in the news. She remembered well the private footage she had taken of the two pilots on the Galactica. Her people would easily break them she thought. Even though they were tough soldiers, their downfall would be each other. D'Anna knew that her people would use the obvious feelings they had for each other against them.

"Let us take a moment to be silent and hope that our lost pilots are found" said Roslin over the wireless.

D'Anna did take a moment…

_She imagined the woman chained up with the man looking on in despair as she was tortured. _

_The man was shouting out for them to stop, to torture him instead, under the false delusion that there was an "instead of." The onslaught of the woman continued, the lashes across her back would endure until she was unconscious._

_The man was tied to chair in front of the woman's cage. He was being asked constant questions about the fleet. Whenever he would refuse to answer or made no answer at all the woman took the punishment. The woman's cries echoed around the room as each lash tore her back apart. She would scream out for him not to answer, which would only bring on more punishment to herself._

_When the woman was too weak and beaten down to survive any more she would trade places with the man. Then it would be her turn to watch…_

D'Anna found herself wishing for a moment that she could take her own life so that she could be there. How she would enjoy taking the joy out of their lives.

"Thank you for coming everyone" she heard Roslin say over the wireless as the moment of silence finished.

D'Anna had no idea that the "death" of two pilots could have such an effect. The fleet was weak as long as they stayed dormant in space. She would make sure this weakness and despair continued until her people could come and finished them all off.

*********************************************************************

The fleet had been searching for eleven nights and twelve days without a break, the pilots were exhausted, but they still powered on in the hope of finding their comrades. The fleet had stayed in the same place with raptors jumping back and forth. Fortunately they had not seen or heard from the cylons since the last attack.

Karl had taken on the role of temporary CAG as no-one else seemed to be in the state of mind to do the job yet.

He spared a moment to stand in the memorial corridor to look at the gap where, up to a few months ago, his photo had been. Kara had told him that she had put a picture of him up on the wall the day after the initial attacks. It was a photograph Kara had taken at basic training, of him lying down on his bunk with a lollipop sticking out of his mouth.

It had touched Karl that Kara had gone to the trouble to do that for him. Now it was his job to return the gesture. Adama still refused to believe that they were dead; he was convinced that they had crashed on a planet or jumped to another system. As much as it saddened him, Karl knew this could not be true. The fact that they could not communicate with Galactica indicated a total loss of power in the raptor, so they could not have jumped away. If they had crashed, there were no planets nearby with a breathable atmosphere, so they would have run out of oxygen eight days ago.

Karl knew they had either been killed or captured. He hoped for the former, even though it meant the loss of his best friend. After what had happened to Kara on Caprica he dreaded what would happen if she was captured again.

He sniffed as he wiped a wayward tear from his cheek, unable to remember the last time he had cried.

He took out a large photograph from his jacket, which he had found in the ready room amongst a pile of paper. The picture had obviously been taken during the Colonial Day celebration that he had heard so much about. When else would Kara have worn a dress?

It had struck Karl immediately how beautiful Kara looked in the arms of Lee, wearing the stunning blue dress. He had to admit to being shocked when Kara confessed that she was frakking Lee. But what he saw in from the picture was not just a frak between pilots; he saw love in their eyes.

Karl sighed and then gently placed the photograph on the wall, pinning it in place.

"Goodbye Kara" he said quietly to himself. "Let him look after you."

*********************************************************************

In another part of the galaxy the Battlestar Pegasus suddenly flashed into existence in a distant system.

"Anything on dradis Mr Hoshi?" Cain asked sharply.

"I'm afraid not Admiral. According to the old star maps this sector is known as Omega but there is not much here Sir, just a few planets, no real resources."

"Then prepare to jump to a sector where there _are_ resources" she snapped.

Cain was annoyed. The cylon's trail had gone cold in the past two weeks; it was like they had just disappeared. Cain wondered if the cylons had found what they were chasing after so vehemently.

Part of her had felt this jump would bring results, that they would find what the cylons were chasing. But as ever there was nothing, it was a bitter and disappointing blow. She found herself hoping that their luck would change soon. She knew they could not just jump forever, one day their fuel reserves would run out.

If only she knew how close they had come to finding their goal, to finding their fleet.


	11. Goodbye

Chapter Ten

Roslin never thought that the morale of the fleet could sink any lower than it had been in the period following the initial attacks. In the first month of their exodus she had seen despair and mourning on a mass scale. Their thirst for salvation, however, had kept the fleet going, the hope for a new life driving them all on.

In the eight weeks since Apollo and Starbuck had disappeared she had seen this hope dwindle. She could never have predicted that two people would have such an effect, especially two pilots who had no real presence in the eyes of the fleet. But it had sent shockwaves throughout the masses.

Adama had spent four weeks in life-station under observation. When he was released he had holed himself up in his quarters, leaving the running of the ship to Tigh. The fleet, which was still resentful of the military since the Gideon incident, was not happy about this development.

To make matters worse, two weeks ago D'Anna Biers had released previously unseen footage from her time on the Galactica. It had contained a heart warming moment between the two lost pilots as they exercised in the gym. They had looked so happy and comfortable in each others presence, obviously completely unaware that they were being watched. D'Anna had called the footage the "true portrayal of comradeship." She had presented it as a gift in order to honour them, but its effect was the opposite. Sometimes it was better to try and forget what was hurting, so you could grieve and move on. The footage brought back to the fore what the people had missed most about them.

Lieutenant Agathon was still the acting CAG, another unpopular choice. It wasn't his fault it was just that no-one else seemed motivated or qualified enough to do the job. The pilots were unresponsive to his command and sullenly flew their CAPs. The ship no longer heard the playful banter of Starbuck over the comm systems. They had also lost the mentors and leadership they had found in the Adama men.

Adama had refused to accept that they were dead, so the fleet had remained at the same location for eight weeks. He still hoped that they would suddenly jump back one day and he would not here any other opinion on the matter. There had been no funeral, no closure for anybody.

Fortunately the cylons had not attacked the fleet during this time but the fleet was constantly on edge thinking that at any moment they would descend upon them.

And now they were losing their President…

Roslin could feel herself wasting away slowly, her hold on life leaving her as each day passed. She knew it would only be a matter of weeks or even days until she joined her family and those that they had left behind. Roslin decided that she could not leave this world in the state that it was in.

She would have to confront Adama.

When Roslin entered his quarters they were dark, the smell of alcohol and sweat wafting through her nostrils. Adama was sitting at his desk with an empty bottle of ambrosia in front of him. The room was a mess, with boxes everywhere and various items scattered about. Roslin found she glanced at one of the boxes, which had a photo album sticking out.

As Adama had not even acknowledged her existence she decided to pick up the album and open it. The inside was inscribed with "Leland Joseph Adama aged two to three." Roslin gave a small smile as she recognised a young Lee immediately. He was only a toddler but still had the bright blue eyes and the same serious expression he had often carried. The pictures mainly showed Lee playing with various toys and in a few pictures he was riding a tricycle, with a triumphant look across his face.

There was only one picture of Lee with his dad. They were standing apart next to a small cot containing a baby, which Roslin guessed must be Adama's youngest son, Zak.

"Lee was so proud when we brought Zak home" came a gravely voice from the other side of the room, making Roslin jump slightly.

"Bill…"

"He would stay by his side relentlessly. Once I even found him asleep at the foot of his cot."

"I'm so sorry Bill, I really am. He was too young…"

"He's not dead."

"Bill," said Roslin quietly. "Bill, it's been eight weeks. He's gone."

"They may have jumped away and found a planet to land on."

Roslin hated this conversation already, but it had to be done, "do you really believe, that if they were still alive, Lieutenant Thrace would not have found a way to bring Lee back to you yet?"

"I refuse to give up on him. I've done that to him too many times. Do you see that picture of us? That was the first time I had seen him in six months. I even missed the birth of his brother. I refuse to let him down again."

"He knew how much you loved him, truly he did."

Adama didn't respond. Instead he grabbed his bottle of ambrosia, saw that it was empty and threw it in the bin, causing the bottle to shatter. Roslin couldn't help jumping at the sudden violent sound in the silent room.

"Lee would not want this Bill," she continued. "He would not want you to stop living, nor would Lieutenant Thrace."

"I refuse…"

"They're dead Bill," said Roslin, abruptly interrupting Adama. "I'm so, so sorry but they're gone."

Adama stood up quickly and then silently left the room. He knew she was right, but he still could not let them go. He felt that if he did, then he would fail Lee again, just like he did to Zak.

*********************************************************************

Adama did not know where he was going. The crew scattered as he stalked through the hallways, weary of being in his wake. Adama felt a pang of hurt strike through him. He had seen the crew react to him in a number of ways but they had never feared him.

Adama turned a corner and found himself in the memorial corridor, face to face with the photograph Helo had put up over six weeks ago. Lee and Kara looked so happy and at peace. The responsibilities of the fleet and fighting for their own lives, were no longer weighing on them. He moved closer to the picture, placing his hand gently upon it and felt the tears streak down his face.

He knew what he had to do, as much as it pained him to do it.

*********************************************************************

Tigh was pleased to be shocked when Adama walked into the CIC that afternoon, looking like he had finally had a shower and a shave.

"Welcome back," he said in the warmest voice he could muster.

Adama glanced briefly at Tigh and then studied the dradis monitor for a moment, "Mr Gaeta I need you to plot a course to the Omega sector, we have a planet to find."

"Yes Sir," responded Gaeta slightly hesitatingly.

Adama ignored Gaeta and grabbed the intercom phone, holding it up to his mouth.

"This is the Commander," he said in a stern and strong voice. "I have resumed command of the ship, all hands prepare for a jump in thirty minutes. A funeral will be held for Captain Adama and Lieutenant Thrace at 0900 hours tomorrow, all non-essential crew members are to be in attendance in full dress uniforms."

The crew in the CIC all bowed their heads as Adama finished his speech. They watched as he put the phone down again and stood staring at the dradis consol in eerie silence.

*********************************************************************

At 0900 hours the next morning virtually the whole crew walked down to the hangar deck in their full dress greys, their gold braids and white gloves gleaming. There had not been this many people at a funeral since the mass memorial service after the initial attacks. Roslin, Billy and the quorum members all stood at the front with the senior officers. The rest of the crew stood behind them.

Kara and Lee were both given a full military service, which was conducted with the usual grace.

Adama said a few words as their Commanding officer as he did for all services. He then took out two small boxes from his pocket and turned to the crew.

"We are here today to honour two of the best soldiers and pilots that the Colonial Fleet has ever known. Without these two most, if not all of us, would not be standing here today…"

Roslin thought about those words for a moment. Adama was right, if it wasn't for Apollo's quick actions, the cylons would have detected Colonial One when she had refused to jump away. If it wasn't for Starbuck, shooting down the majority of the nukes heading for the Galactica during the initial attacks, no-one would be standing where there were today.

"…In honour of these achievements and services to the Colonies I am proud to announce posthumous promotions to both of these fine officers."

Adama walked up to the airlock where two empty coffins lay draped in Colonial flags. He placed the new insignia pins on top of each of them, bowed his head and then rejoined the crew.

He nodded to Karl who then walked slowly out of the ranks and stood behind the lectern.

Karl took a deep breath before he began to speak, "Kara Thrace was one of the most vivacious, courageous and committed individuals I have ever known. She was also the best and craziest pilot I have ever known, the best triad player and would leave most people for dust on a Pyramid court. But most importantly she was the best friend I have ever known. Most people did not get the opportunity to know Kara as well as I did. And even I did not know her as much as I thought I did. She was a private person for reasons of her own. To me she will always be the friend who relinquished the opportunity to walk off her demerits, so she could help me pass the final basic flight exam. The friend to whom I made the promise that I would take to my own grave, the true story of how she got her call sign. I will always regret not getting to know the part of her that I saw on Caprica, the woman who had painted canvas after canvas and listened to recordings of her father's piano music. And I will take this regret with me for the rest of my life."

Karl took a few moments before he walked with his head bowed to Kara's coffin and placed her wings on top. When he returned to his place Adama took his turn to walk to the lectern.

"There are an infinite number of words to say about my son and not enough time to say them. I would gladly stand here forever and recite all of them, but it would still not be enough. I once said that we each have to live with the things that we have done. I will always live with the knowledge that I let my son down, let him down throughout his entire life. He was a son who would make any father proud, but I was a lousy father who was never there. I did not embrace how special Lee was to me, until he was gone and it was too late. I will always cherish the time I had with my son and take this with me until the day that I draw my last breath."

Adama found that he couldn't say anymore. He placed Lee's wings on top of his empty coffin, placing a hand warmly over them for a moment. But he found that he couldn't leave, the sorrow gripping him like a vice. Roslin gently walked over and took his hand in hers and guided him slowly back to his place in the procession.

The Chaplin then stood forward to make his final address, "The burdens of this life are with us but a short time. For Major Lee Adama and Captain Kara Thrace the time was too short, but we take comfort in knowing their lives were willingly given in service to all of us. We honour them for that. And thus, it falls upon us to repent our sins and with the help of the lords of Kobol, make our own lives worthy of that gift. And now, we commit their spirits to the stars secure in the knowledge that we will be reunited with them, in a better world to come. So say we all."

The rest of the procession shouted, "So say we all" in unison and then saluted as the airlock doors slowly closed, shutting out the coffins.

*********************************************************************

After the funeral Adama sat alone at his desk with two files open in front of him. The top of each file contained Kara and Lee's official photograph. They were both in flight suits and looking serious.

Unfortunately it was the job of the ship's commanding officer to close the files of any deceased crew members.

Adama looked through their files, musing at the differences between them. They were both highly praised officers and pilots; however Kara's file was marred by a number of disciplinary measures and one Court Martial. Lee had no blemishes on his record but he also did not have as many commendatory reports. Kara's file in comparison contained numerous acclamations for bravery and excellence from before and after the attacks on the Colonies. Lee only had one commendation and that was from after the attacks, when he had led the assault on the cylon refinery.

Their individual assessments were also very different. Kara was described as being one of the most natural pilots ever to pass through the academy. Adama felt the report to be a disservice to her; he knew that she was _the most _natural pilot ever in the history of the Twelve Colonies. Lee was described as being a gifted, by the book pilot; however he did not display a natural or passionate flare when he was in the air. Again Adama thought this assessment was way off the mark. Lee had proven time and time again that he was more than just a by-the-book pilot.

Despite their differences each file stated that both pilots would make fine officers and natural leaders, who would go far in the military.

The tears pooled in Adama's eyes as he added the last entries to their files. Underneath the date of their disappearance he simply wrote three small words:

"Killed in Action"

*********************************************************************

The fleet moved on gradually in the two weeks following the funeral. They were finally back along their path to Earth and the moral throughout the fleet was growing day by day.

A week after the funeral Billy had found Roslin slumped at her desk and she was rushed to the Galactica.

Everyone thought that they were going to lose her. Fortunately Baltar proved why he was known as one of the leading minds from the Colonies. He had saved her using the foetal blood from Sharon's baby. Roslin, who had ordered the termination of the pregnancy previously, was injected with the blood. It had killed off the cancerous cells invading her tired body.

Roslin did not know what to feel about the unborn baby that had saved her life. All she knew was that the child could not stay with Sharon, if it was ever born.

What made it harder for her to focus was a lack of sleep. Since being released from the life-station she had been tossing and turning all night as images kept swarming around her mind.

_She saw bright white lights enveloping her as she walked through the stark opera house. The light hurt her eyes as she walked through a set of doors leading to rows of chairs facing the stage. She walked down the aisle slowly, eventually reaching the stage and then the small staircase leading up to the stage. When she reached the top there was a woman sitting on the stage, dressed in a white gown with golden hair cascading around her shoulders. Roslin walked towards the woman but before she reached her the woman stood and walked away. Roslin found herself shouting out for her to stop, but it was too late, the woman disappeared into the light._

Roslin awokesuddenly from her dream. She sighed heavily; it was the third time that week that she had had the same dream. Every time she had climbed onto the stage in the attempt to reach the woman only to have her walk away.

*********************************************************************

Since the funeral Karl had spent every evening he had spare down in the brig with Sharon. She was now five months pregnant and her stomach was really beginning to swell gently.

Karl wished that he could be on the other side of the glass so he could he feel his baby girl kicking. But he was restricted to using the phone.

"It's not too much longer until she is with us," he said gently down the phone.

"If they let her," replied Sharon sourly.

"I told you, that is not an issue any more. The President has said that the pregnancy can continue, she won't order a termination again. Our little girl saved her life."

"And then what? Will they let her stay with me or will I only get to see her grow up from behind a pane of glass?"

"We'll cross that bridge when it comes. For now I want you to concentrate on keeping her safe and well. The doctor said that you need to stay relaxed."

Relaxing was easier said then done when every day she worried that the President would change her mind. Sharon had even expected to be thrown out of the airlock when Apollo and Starbuck disappeared.

"How is life as the CAG going?" Sharon asked with as much spirit as she could muster.

"Hard, especially when hardly any of the pilots want you to be in the same room as them."

"Because you got a cylon pregnant," stated Sharon matter-of-factly.

"Hey, I don't give a frak what they think. I love you."

"I know."

"Things will get better, I promise."

"So what else is happening? I don't get to hear any news about the fleet down here."

"Nothing much, just the usual daily CAPs and attempting to train up new pilots, without a qualified flight instructor. It's hard going; I don't know how Starbuck did it. No-one else can seem to get the nuggets to fly straight let alone perform combat manoeuvres. The Chief has been experimenting. One evening he just decided to start building a new viper."

"How's it coming along?"

"Not too badly, when I saw it yesterday it was even starting to look like a ship."

"Time's up Sir," said a marine from the other side of the brig. Karl turned his head and nodded to the corporal.

"I've got to go," he said as he held his hand up to the glass as Sharon did the same. "I love you."

"I love you too," replied Sharon.

Sharon stayed at the glass until Karl had left and then she went back to her solitary bed in the middle of the room. Corporal Jones had allowed an extra five minutes to Karl's visit. He was Sharon's favourite prison guard. It wasn't like he was a friend to her, but at least he didn't make her feel that at any moment he would open up her cell and shoot her in the chest. He also allowed Karl to stay a bit longer on his visits.

Sharon settled down on her cot and stared up at the ceiling. She thought about Karl. He was still sad about losing Starbuck. Sharon knew that they had been friends for years and felt a pang of jealousy about the bond they had shared. She had not shared her thoughts, that she did not believe Apollo and Starbuck were dead, with Karl.

Ever since they had disappeared she had been haunted by dreams of them. In the dreams she was desperately trying to reach out for them but they would suddenly disappear. Sharon would then hear a strange sound, like the crying out of a baby. It was always when the crying started that she would wake up.

*********************************************************************

The next morning began as normal for Karl. He woke up and had a shower, wary of the other officers who avoided him in the head. He then got dressed into his dress blues, as he wasn't due for CAP until 1500 hours and headed for the ready room.

The pilots were waiting for him, but they did not stand as he entered. Karl had decided weeks ago to ignore this lack of military etiquette.

Unfortunately Karl didn't have a chance to start his morning briefing before the alarms sounded throughout the ship, closely followed by a voice over the comm system.

"Action stations, action stations, set condition one throughout the ship."

"You heard him, get your asses down to the hangar deck now," ordered Karl.

As the ready room rapidly emptied, Karl also exited the room and made his way quickly to the CIC. As ever, when action stations were declared, the CIC was alive with commotion.

Gaeta could be heard shouting across the room, "Sir, the baseship just jumped back into the system, still no sign of any raiders being launched."

"What's she doing?" Adama asked to no-one in particular.

"Sir, all alert pilots are making their way down to the hangar now," said Karl as he walked up to Adama. "They should be in the tubes within five minutes."

"We're not sure if there is going to be anything to frakking shoot at yet," said Tigh.

"What's going on?"

"A Baseship keeps jumping in and out of the system. So far she hasn't launched any raiders or any sort of attack on the fleet," replied Adama.

"Sir," interrupted Gaeta. "The baseship has disappeared again."

"Frakking cylons," muttered Tigh as he continued to gaze at the dradis screens.

"Sir, it's jumped back again," said Gaeta shaking his head.

"Galactica, this is Kat do you copy?" A voice stated over the comm system.

Adama moved to the phone and picked up the receiver, "Kat this is Galactica, what do you have?"

"Galactica, Kat, this baseship is acting weird. She looks like she is listing out of control."

"Any signs of an attack?"

"Negative Sir, looks like no-one is at the controls. Hold on, Galactica she's launching raiders, I repeat we have inbound raiders."

"All vipers engage the raiders. Mr Gaeta have the fleet prepared for an emergency jump."

The CIC watched as their viper squadrons neared the baseship. They looked on in apprehension as the blips representing the raiders suddenly stopped and seemingly changed direction.

"Galactica this is Kat. All raiders have disengaged. I repeat all raiders are flying erratically back towards the baseship."

"What the frak?" Exclaimed Tigh.

"Sir the raiders have disappeared off dradis," said Gaeta as he turned away from his dradis consol.

"Galactica, Kat. Half of the raiders just flew into the side of the baseship and have been destroyed."

"My gods," whispered Tigh.

"Kat this is Galactica," said Adama. "What else do you see?"

"We have reached the baseship, but she hasn't launched any more raiders or fired upon us yet. It's no longer listing out of control but it looks like she's drifting. Looks as if no-one is home, either that or they are all dead…Hang on Galactica. Two heavy raiders have launched from the baseship."

"Sir," said Gaeta. "I've got the heavy raiders on dradis…Scrap that, they've disappeared."

"Galactica this is Kat, the heavy raiders turned away from us and jumped away before we had a chance to engage."

"They're escaping from the baseship," stated Adama.

"But from what? And why?" Asked Tigh.

They both stared at the dradis consol for a minute before Adama spoke, "Helo, I want you to assemble a team of marines. I want to know what is happening on that ship."

"Yes Sir," said Karl and then saluted.

"Helo, any signs that there are cylons still active on that ship, you are to evacuate and report back immediately. I want all my soldiers back in one piece."

Karl nodded his assent and then exited the CIC, heading towards the hangar deck. Within fifteen minutes three raptors containing a contingent of marines exited Galactica's flight pod and headed towards the baseship.

There were no signs of life coming from the ship as the raptors neared her. Inert raiders drifted into one another causing them to ricochet in different directions. Debris floated around everywhere, colliding gently with the raptors as they made their way.

Karl had no idea what was going on, but it seemed to him as if someone had just come up and pulled out the plug...

* * *

**Thanks again for all of the lovely reviews! **


	12. The Baseship

**Many apologies for the delay in posting this chapter, my computer decided to blow up and it took me ages to get a new one. I hope it was worth the wait, it's a bit dark but necessary. Just remember that I'm a sucker for happy endings.**

**(Disclaimer: I'm not a doctor or a scientist so some aspects may not be entirely realistic.)**

**Enjoy!**

Chapter Eleven

The occupants of the raptors were all eerily silent as they slowly made their way through the field of debris that spread out from the baseship. They had lost count of the number of raiders that had drifted past them, a couple of which had gently knocked into the side of the raptors. The atmosphere inside was a mixture of jubilation at seeing so many destroyed raiders and feelings of fear of the unknown. No-one had any idea what could have happened to incapacitate the cylons with apparent ease.

They looked on in wonder as the raptors entered the baseship through what they guessed was its landing pod. The belly of the beast seemed to be alive, opening up its jaws to allow them to land.

When Karl had woken up this morning this was the last place that he had wished to be by the end of the day. He was the first to exit the raptors when they had all landed and powered down. Several marines in full gear exited after him forming a perimeter of the landing bay.

The room was empty and silent. The lights were dimmed down with slight illumination emanating from consoles, creating a red tinge to the darkened room.

"The Commanders orders are to take a look around and see if we can find out what happened here," said Karl addressing the marines. "It is not a mission to engage the cylons. If we come across resistance your orders are to call it in and then rendezvous here. Sergeant Hadrian you take your team aft, the rest of you follow me and Sergeant Mathias."

The marines spread into two groups, half of them going down one corridor and the other following Karl. Before they had travelled to the baseship Karl had been given a brief report from Sharon of the general layout. He guessed from her instructions that he was heading to the fore of the ship.

****************************************************************

The corridors of the ship were deserted, the lights flashing on and off intermittently casting the walls with sporadic shadows. The atmosphere chilled Karl to the core sending shivers down his spine. He had not felt the call of death echo so much through a place since he had been stranded on Caprica.

His gun was raised as the contingent of marines neared a turn in the corridor. With caution Mathias poked her head around the corner and then quickly slammed herself backwards. She silently pointed to two marines, indicating to them to cover her.

Karl's gun was cocked and ready to provide any back-up.

Mathias swung low around the corner with her gun at the ready but she didn't fire. Instead she held up her hand to indicate for the marines to stand down their alert. Karl rounded the corner and immediately saw what had caused the alarm. On the ground was a centurion lying on its front seemingly lifeless. He walked up to it and gently nudged its arm with his foot, mercifully nothing happened.

Karl had no idea what had caused the centurion to essentially "die." There did not appear to be any bullet holes or any other damage, it seemed like it had just suddenly dropped lifelessly to the floor.

Karl indicated to the marines to keep going. He did not want to spend any unnecessary time on the ghost ship.

The corridor darkened when they came to an intersection. The lights here were not working, the only illumination coming from the left. Karl saw that the source of the light was coming from numerous consoles which lined the walls of a large room, which was sparsely furnished with only a red sofa sitting in the middle.

"Is this their idea of a bedroom?" Mathias asked quietly.

"I have no idea" replied Karl as he nodded his head to the marines who promptly entered the room. The room was dark but there was clearly no-one inside. "Come on let's keep going."

They turned and left the room travelling down the corridor going right. Here the lights were again flickering on and off. Sparks crackled where some of the light fixings had blown, leaving bits of metal debris dangling down. A dull echo boomed through the corridor like the walls themselves were struggling to hold on to life.

The corridor they travelled along was protracted with a number of rooms adjoining it, all of which were similar to the one they had already seen, void of any signs of life.

Karl was beginning to think that they had gone completely the wrong way when his mind was suddenly drawn to another intersection. This time the corridor divided into two directions, left or right. However the predicament of which way to go was not what was occupying Karl's thoughts the most. He was drawn to the five bodies that lay in between his choice of destination. Karl felt his stomach lurch as he recognised the face of Sharon occupying two of the bodies. He knew they were not the woman he loved but it still cut at his heart to see them.

"Looks like they were shot to death" said Mathias as she poked the nearest body with her gun. "Frakking toasters," she added with an edge of spite in her voice.

Karl recognised the body of the cylon Mathias was poking as the model who had been aboard Galactica on the day of the initial attacks. The cylon was wearing a similar suit to the one he had been wearing then. Karl did not recognise the two remaining identical bodies. They were male and had light coloured hair.

All of the cylons had bullet holes ravaging their bodies, their blood pooling around them.

"One good thing about toasters," said one of the marines, "they sure do bleed well."

Karl ignored the comment and considered his options. Should he go left or right? He picked up his radio and pressed a button. "Hadrian, do you copy?"

"Hadrian here Sir" came a female voice over the radio.

"Have you found anything?"

"Just a few dead toasters Sir, nothing to report."

"Copy that, keep looking."

"Yes Sir, Hadrian out."

The radio buzzed off and Karl put the radio back on to his belt. The lights overhead flashed on and off briefly as Karl began to speak, "Mathias, take four marines and head left. I want you to keep in radio contact; any signs of a threat call it in straight away. We'll rendezvous here in fifteen minutes."

"Yes Sir. Johnson, Edmund, Harryman and Foster you're with me," said Mathias pointing to the four men. They continued with their guns raised and headed down the left hand corridor.

Karl continued with the three remaining marines down the right hand corridor. Again the lights were flashing overhead, making the corridor appear smaller. Sweat mottled Karl's brow, which he swiftly brushed away with his sleeve. The air was humid and he was beginning to feel very uncomfortable.

The corridor was shorter than he expected and again divided into two, but this time it only split into two large rooms. Karl felt a small breeze hit his face, sending a chill down his spine. A feeling of cold fear gripped him and he really did not want to know what was causing it. He nodded his head to two of the marines who entered one of the rooms as he entered the other with Private Goodman.

"This room feels so cold Sir" said Goodman.

"I know what you mean," replied Karl as he emerged through the entrance.

This room was not like the others; it was slightly larger and contained what looked like a large white cage. Karl likened it to the cylon version of the brig on Galactica. He had a very bad feeling about it as he saw chains hanging down from the top of the cage. The lights flashed suddenly illuminating the shackles and the blood staining the floor.

"Someone was being kept in here," whispered Karl to no-one in particular.

The smell of decay hit Karl's nose as he neared the cage. It was enough to make him press his arm to his face to drown it out.

"What the frak happened here Sir?" Goodman asked.

"I don't want to know."

Karl did not want to know who had been in that cage, whoever it was, he wasn't there anymore and judging by the amount of blood on the floor he wasn't likely to ever find out.

"Over here Sir," said Goodman as he raised his torch towards a bundle in the corner of room.

Karl walked over to where the Private indicated and was about to examine the bundle when Private Greggs came into the room.

"Sir we have a body in here, another cylon."

Karl followed the Private into the adjoining room, which was similar, containing a large cage with shackles hanging down. The difference being that in this cage there was the body of a cylon. Karl recognised her as being the blond model that he had seen on Caprica. Her neck looked distorted, spun around at a broken angle.

"Sir you need to come back in here now," said Goodman. The tremble in his voice grabbed Karl's attention straight away. When he returned back to the room Goodman was pointing his torch back at the bundle but this time his hand was shaking.

Karl walked over slowly. He flung his gun over his shoulder and crouched down in front of the bundle. Time seemed to stop as he immediately recognised the blue colour of a Colonial uniform. One of their own had been kept here. Karl placed to uniform to the side and saw the flightsuit that was beneath it.

Alarm bells started ringing in Karl's head and he could feel his heart pounding in chest, the pace quickening as he saw a gleam of metal on the floor. He reached down and scraped up the object. When he opened up his palm the blood drained immediately from his face and suddenly all he could hear was the sound of his own breathing.

Engraved on a pair of dogtags was the name "."

Karl barely had time to fully register what was in his hand before he heard someone yelling down the corridor. He was about to berate whoever it was for shouting but the panic in the voice told him something was seriously wrong.

"Sir, sir you've got to come with me right frakking now!!"

******************************************************************

Mathias led her team down the dark corridor. They carefully rounded a corner and came to another long corridor with many entrances branching off from it.

Mathias had a sneaking suspicion that she had drawn the short straw with going left.

All of the rooms they came to revealed nothing spectacular and they were about to give up and turn back, to meet with the others, when they came to a poorly lit room. The lights were not flashing but they were dimmed.

The room was different from the others. In the middle and sunken into the floor stood what could only be described as a bath tub with a prone figure inside, tubes sticking out of it in all directions.

There were a number of items strewn around the room but Mathias' concentration was focused on the pool. The figure inside looked to be a person, a woman and she was lying in what could only be described as goo.

"How could anybody live like in this?" Mathias asked rhetorically as she poked her gun against the head of the woman.

There was no reaction.

"I think she's dead," said Private Edmund.

Mathias' eyes branched out from the tub, following the tubing and wires that flowed from the naked body, some of which seemed to run to the other side of the pool meeting at an overturned table.

It was then that Matthias saw the hand sticking out from underneath the table.

She raised her gun and approached the table with caution, closely flanked by Corporal Harryman. Mathias raised her foot and hooked it under the table pushing it over with a gentle shove.

Mathias suddenly jerked herself backwards tripping over the rim of the pool, one leg stepping into the goo with a splash before she fell to the floor in a heap. She looked on in complete shock, her heart racing rapidly.

After a few moments that seemed to last an eternity Harryman finally spoke, "Oh my Gods is..."

"Get Agathon now godsdammit!!" Mathias shouted out, her breathing heavy. Harryman reacted to her order straight away and ran out of the room in the direction of Karl, yelling out for him to help.

*****************************************************************

Karl had a horrible suspicion of what had caused the panic, but that still didn't prepare him for what he saw when he entered the room.

He took a sharp breath in shock as he saw the frail skeletal frame of the woman he had called his best friend for years, but she was not the Kara he had known for so long. She looked so small lying sprawled on the floor, her hair lank and bloodied covering most of her face.

It took Karl a few seconds to reach her side and stroke back her hair gently but Kara did not react. Her eyes were firmly shut and her mouth slightly parted.

"Kara," he said in a soft voice. "Kara, can you hear me?"

Again there was no response. Karl looked up and saw the marines standing around him, their heads lowered.

"Get some frakking blankets and the med kit here now, and clear the room!" Karl shouted out.

All of the marines quickly exited except for Mathias who had joined Karl in kneeling by Kara's side.

"Is she..." Matthias began.

Karl pressed two of his fingers gently to Kara's neck. "She's got a pulse, faint, but it's there." He then lowered his ear to her mouth, "she's breathing fine."

"What the frak happened here?"

"I don't know," replied Karl grimacing.

"What are all the wires for?"

There appeared to be some kind of sensors suckered on to Kara's head, which in turn were attached to the woman in the pool. Karl didn't know if he would do more harm by removing them but he did anyway. Kara still did not react or even flutter her eyes when they were gone.

As he was concerned about Kara choking, due to being sprawled out on her back, Karl gently rolled her onto her side leaning her head up to help her breathe.

Mathias let out a small gasp as Kara's back became exposed to the room. She was only wearing her military issue tanks and briefs, having been deprived of her flight suit. The tanks were ripped in various places along her back and blood stained the already dark material. The rest of her body was completely covered in bruises and her ribs stuck out of her emaciated frame. The hand that had been sticking out from under the table was twisted and swollen, her other hand was already in a soiled bandage.

Karl gently stroked his hand down Kara's cheek.

After a moment one of the marines returned with some blankets, which Karl hastily placed over Kara's body. It was an act not just to keep her warm but to protect her dignity.

"What now Sir?" The marine asked.

"I want this whole frakking ship searched from top to bottom, every inch, until we find Apollo" said Karl.

"We've got to get her to doc Cottle," added Matthias.

Karl knew she was right but he was afraid to move her for fear of hurting her. On the other hand he was terrified that she would die right there on the floor. Karl decided that if death was going to claim Kara than it would be in her home with the people who loved her, not here on the floor on this dark and ghostly baseship.

He bunched up the blankets and scooped Kara into his arms as gently as possible.

Tears pooled in his eyes as he began to quickly walk out of the room. He remembered the last time he had held her like this as he had climbed up that steep hill on Kobol. The dramatic difference in weight, to how Kara was then, gripped at his heart.

_What the frak did they do to you Kara? What did they put you through?_

****************************************************************

It had seemed like an eternity since the marine contingent had been sent to the baseship. The only communication they had received was from Racetrack informing them that they had all landed safely with no sign of cylon life. The CIC was silent from the tension as they awaited news. Everyone was ready to jump straight back to action stations should the baseship suddenly come back to life.

Adama's eyes were glued to the dradis consol waiting for the Colonial transponders to emerge from the large red blip that identified the baseship. After what seemed like a week he breathed a sigh of relief as he saw a green blip appearing on the consol.

"Sir," called out Dualla urgently. "Helo is declaring a medical emergency and requests the presence of doc Cottle on the hangar deck immediately, Officer down."

"Put him through to actual," replied Adama. He then picked up the handset. "What's going on Lieutenant?"

"Sir we require urgent medical assistance" said Karl over the comm. "Sir we've... am I speaking to actual?"

"Yes, what is it Helo?"

"We've... we've found Starbuck Sir."

Adama didn't know how to respond, he was numbed with shock, relief and guilt. He had given up on finding his son and Kara when they had obviously needed him most.

Adama silently put down the handset.

After a few moments he spoke as the raptor neared the Galactica on the dradis consol.

"Do you believe in miracles?" He said.

"Bill?" Tigh asked confused.

"Do you believe in miracles?" Adama repeated.

"Do you?"

"I do now," he said solemnly, his mind divided between the elation that Kara was alive, fear that he would now lose her, guilt that he had left her behind and hope that he could find Lee. "Dee, have Cottle and his team report to the hangar deck immediately. Tigh, you have the CIC."

******************************************************************

The raptor was guided into the hangar deck by Tyrol who kept yelling for people to get out of its way. Many of the crew members had heard that an emergency landing was in progress and that an officer was down. Their curiosity brought them to the deck so they could see who was hurt.

They quickly scattered however, when they heard the booming voice of Adama ordering them to move out of the way as he overlooked the deck from the gallery.

******************************************************************

Karl was still gently holding Kara as the raptor docked and was brought onto the deck. The hatch seemed to take forever to open making him curse under his breath.

As soon as he had enough headroom to exit the raptor he ran down the wing towards Cottle, who was waiting at the bottom with a stretcher and a medical team.

Small gasps could be heard all around the deck as people recognised their comrade being placed on the stretcher.

Cottle and his medical team got to work straight away, securing Kara to the stretcher and covering her with more blankets. An oxygen mask was placed over her face and one of the nurses started pumping air into her tired lungs. Cottle placed two fingers around Kara's wrist and timed her pulse for a few moments, a frown growing on his face.

"She needs to be rehydrated stat," said Cottle spitting out his cigarette. "Hook her up to a saline drip."

Ishay took Kara's arm and tightened a strap above her elbow. She then pierced Kara's skin with a large IV needle and then hooked her up to a saline bag. Ishay flipped open the bag and watched as the fluid began to quickly drip down through the tubing.

As Ishay was doing this Cottle lifted Kara's eyelids shining a torch into each of her eyes in turn. "Pupils are unequal but reactive." He then moved to the other end of the stretcher and gently stroked the sole of Kara's foot, which curled immediately at the sensation. Good, I think it's safe to move her to lifestation, I want to run more tests there."

The medical team had just begun to move the stretcher when Kara started to convulse.

"Frak," exclaimed Cottle. "She's seizing, hold her down and roll her."

Cottle grabbed a needle out of his pocket and injected it straight into the IV drip. After a few agonising moments the convulsions mercifully stopped.

Cottle breathed a sigh of relief.

"I want to intubate before we try and move her again," he said and helped his team roll Kara back onto her back. He stood at the end of the stretcher and removed the oxygen mask. After tilting her head back slightly Cottle inserted a metal instrument into Kara's mouth and fed a tube down the back of her throat. Ishay then quickly attached an oxygen bag to the tube and began to squeeze it every few seconds.

"Let's move her to lifestation quickly," Cottle ordered.

The medical team pushed the stretcher rapidly out of the hangar deck, spreading the crew as they went. Everyone was eerily quiet, too shocked to do or say anything. A few people had tears in their eyes; Cally had hidden her face on Tyrol's shoulder.

Karl was sat silently on the wing of the raptor with Racetrack standing beside him, her hand on his shoulder.

From his vantage point on the gallery overlooking the hangar deck, Adama gripped the safety rail tightly making his knuckles turn white.

He yelled down to the deck. "I want that baseship searched from top to bottom, strip it bare and then destroy it. Use as many marines as you need."

If Lee was on board that baseship Adama was going to find him.

******************************************************************

Adama sat in lifestation for what seemed like days, waiting for the verdict from Cottle. He knew Kara wasn't dead otherwise they would have told him ages ago.

He had been there for six hours watching Cottle and his nurses rush around the room carrying various medical instruments, hearing various sounds coming from a curtained off area.

The tears spread down his cheeks as he remembered how weak and fragile Kara had looked when Karl had carried her out of the raptor.

She was no longer the Starbuck he remembered. The Starbuck who would smile and light up any room. The Starbuck who would talk incessantly during her CAP runs. The Starbuck he would see running through the halls every morning without fail.

It pained him to see her face looking so drawn out and pale. He feared that she would not pull through her ordeal and he felt guilty for letting it happen.

"Bill?" Adama's eyes shot up at the sound of Roslin's voice. "I just heard. Has there been any word from Cottle?"

"Nothing yet."

"Any sign of..."

"Nothing yet," repeated Adama.

Roslin sensed that Adama was not in a fit state to talk. She was about to sit down beside him when she saw Tigh standing a short distance away. She walked up to him and guided him away from Adama's earshot.

"Any news on Captain Apollo?" She asked, forgetting that Lee had been promoted.

"Nothing, we've been tearing the ship apart for six hours now but no Apollo. There were signs that he had been there at some point but he's not there now. A lot of ships jumped away from the baseship he could have been on one of them."

Roslin sighed in disappointment at this news, "but they are alive? I mean we thought they were dead?"

"Any news on..." asked Tigh nodding his head in the direction of the curtained off area, ignoring Roslin's question. Roslin shook her head. "She's a fighter," he added

Roslin smiled slightly, "yes, she is."

They both turned suddenly when they heard the sound of a curtain being ripped open by Cottle. He grimaced as he took a cigarette out of his pocket, placed it in his mouth and lit it up. He took a long drag before he walked over towards Adama.

"What's the word doc?" Adama asked as he stood up.

"The word is that she's stable for now."

"But..."

"We can't wake her up," answered Cottle gesturing towards his office. Adama walked calmly into the small room and sat down in the nearest chair. Cottle followed after him closing the hatch. "She's sustained a number of injuries as well as being in the coma."

"Go on."

"We've only performed a cursory exam of all her injuries so far. We'll take her into surgery once we have her toxicology tests back. I won't risk surgery before I get the results, just in case. Her physical exam revealed a number of injuries all over her body consistent with sustained torture. She has deep cuts to her back and thighs and bruising all over. She has a ruptured ear drum, all the fingers on her left hand were fractured and her right arm is broken. Good news is that her injuries should heal in time. It's the coma that I'm worried about."

"What caused it?"

"That's what I'm worried about, we cannot find a cause. I need to know how she was found, everything."

"I'll get Helo to report to you as soon as he returns from the baseship."

"Am I to expect another patient?" Cottle asked as he took another long drag on his cigarette.

"Not at the moment, no" Adama said quietly. "Can I see her?"

"We've finished cleaning her up now so you can see her for ten minutes. I'm keeping visits short until I get her blood work back. I warn you that she's been attached to a number of machines to make sure she breathes easily and to monitor her heart rate."

Adama nodded his head and then walked out of the office. He slowly made his way to the curtained-off area where Ishay was writing up some notes on a clipboard.

"Will you give us a moment?" Adama asked politely.

Ishay nodded, put the clipboard down and walked out of the area closing the curtain behind her.

Adama was alone with Kara, the only sounds coming from the regular beep of her heart monitor and the sound of the pump feeding her oxygen. There were a number of other wires and tubes sticking out of her in different places all leading to various items of machinery.

Cottle and his team had done a good job of cleaning Kara up. Apart from the machinery and a dark bruise around her eye, Adama would have thought she was just sleeping peacefully.

He softly placed a kiss on top of her head, stroking a hand through her hair and then sat down in a chair by the bed. He took her hand in his and squeezed it gently.

It took a few moments for him to speak.

"Welcome home Starbuck, what do you hear?"

But for the first time since he had known Kara she did not respond.


	13. Pegasus

Chapter 12

Admiral Cain relaxed in her quarters perusing through the latest reports that had been provided. She was currently reading a brief summary of their progress, or lack thereof, with the cylon prisoner. Cain had to admire its resilience throughout the months of torture and abuse. She had allowed her crew to do what they liked with it, allowing methods which Cain would normally have considered only with abhorrence. Cain had told herself over and over again that it was just a thing, not a real person. Deep down she knew that her anger at being fooled had clouded her judgement; the thing had gotten to her soul.

Cain had allowed her love for the machine to overshadow the safety of her crew. It was a mistake that Cain was determined not to make again. Her ability to have pity or mercy had been utterly diminished.

After letting out a long sigh she threw the report aside and picked up the next one.

She didn't need to read the report to know how scant their resources were running. They had pillaged and stripped all of the ships they had met since the cylons had attacked, but they had not met another soul for over six months. Their food supplies were down to quarter rations if they didn't eat lunch. Luckily one of the ships they had found had been carrying large stores of Tylium so they had enough fuel to last for at least three years if they limited FTL jumps to once a week. Unfortunately, however, they had no means to refine more Tylium when they had run out. Cain grimaced at the report; they were running low on materials to make ammunition for their vipers. At this rate they would have to start throwing rocks at the cylons.

Cain would never admit defeat, but she knew the day would come when they wouldn't be able to fight back or run away. Cain also knew that she would never give up. She would face them head on and go down in a blaze of glory.

The sudden and loud shrill of the action stations alarm heavily resounding through the ship caused Cain to leap up from her cot and run out of the room. She reached the CIC within minutes.

"Report," she commanded with stern authority.

"An unknown ship just came into dradis range," replied Fisk quickly.

"Launch alert fighters."

"Alert fighters are in the tubes already, CAP is moving to intercept," said Hoshi.

The CIC waited together for an agonising few minutes before their pilots reported back.

"Sir the CAP reports that the ship is a single cylon heavy raider. By the time they reached her it was already drifting," said Hoshi, relaying what he had been told over his head set.

"Send out raiders. I want that thing towed in, any signs of life, destroy it," ordered Cain.

This heavy raider could turn out to be a blessing. They could strip it of all its parts and utilise what they could. Cain had been waiting for months for the opportunity to obtain materials and the solution had just drifted right to them.

**********************************************************************

Towing a heavy raider into the Pegasus' hangar deck was no easy task. It had taken eight pilots and three raptors to finally bring her in. It then took ten members of the deck crew to prise open the hatch to the rear of the vessel. Thankfully the raider still showed no signs of life. Crew members had looked through the windows to see if they could see anyone. Even with their torches shining through, they could only vaguely make out a number of figures inside, all of whom seemed to be dead.

Cain took her time getting to the deck, just before the crew managed to break through. She looked on with curiosity as they finally lowered the hatch by force. Three squads of marines stood guard with their guns raised at the ready.

Nothing stirred inside the raider.

"Go in," Cain ordered from her safe vantage point.

The marines nodded in acquiescence and then approached the inside. There was no flash or bang of gunfire, which Cain considered to be a good sign that whatever had been alive inside was now well and truly dead.

Cain's optimism, however, was short lived as one of the marines called out suddenly.

"Sir, we've got a live one here."

"Kill it," Cain replied back sharply.

"Sir, I'm not so sure it's a cylon," said another marine.

Cain assumed that the marine must be a rooky as no-one else would ever dare question her orders. There was something in the back of Cain's mind, however, that stayed her intent to admonish this poor wretch. She walked closer to the raider and stared down at the marine who looked no more than eighteen years old.

"Report Private," ordered Cain with a strong voice, causing the marine to break out into a sweat.

"Sir, er, one of them looks to be in a bad shape, unlike the others."

Despite his youth this kid was beginning to grate at her. She hated it when inexperienced prepubescent kids made sweeping statements; how the frak did he figure out what the cylons generally looked or lived like. Cain again bit back her temptation to flip out her sidearm and send this kid to join where so many of her crew members had already been sent. Instead she drew nearer the raider until she could see inside, her marines closely flanking her.

It didn't take long for Cain to realise that the kid had been right. There were a number of bodies inside the raider. She recognised a copy of the blond woman she had once called her lover and another female who she did not recognise. There were also two men, one with dark skin and another who stuck out in stark contrast to the rest. For starters this man appeared to be wearing worn and ripped military tanks accompanied only by a pair of standard military issue briefs.

He was from the Colonial Fleet.

At first Cain felt anger at the thought that another toaster had managed to infiltrate the fleet, but then she noticed that the man seemed to be too injured and beaten to be a cylon. He looked like he had been a prisoner. His body was riddled with cuts and bruises and he had a nasty wound to his shoulder, which looked like a fresh bullet wound. Blood had soaked through his tanks and pooled around him on the floor.

"Take him to the brig," Cain ordered after a few moments of contemplation.

Four marines immediately stepped forward, two picking up the man's arms and the other two holding his legs. They roughly lifted him from the floor then marched him out of the hangar deck towards the brig. Not once did the man stir, but he did leave a small trail of blood as he went.

Cain walked up to the body of the blond cylon and shoved its head with her foot. The two female toasters had been riddled with bullet wounds, the male looked like his head had been caved in.

"Toss these bodies out of the airlock," said Cain as she exited the raider. "I want the doctor to perform tests on our prisoner, see if he can work out what he is."

************************************************************************

Lee's eyes were dazzled by a bright light as he slowly tried to open them. He was only vaguely aware of the humming noises that surrounded him; however he was acutely aware of the dull searing ache that resonated along the right side of his body.

He had been shot, he remembered that much.

He also remembered being forced on board the raider as all hell had broken loose on the baseship. Centurions had just started firing upon everyone they saw. His tormentors had dragged him away. Lee assumed that this was in order to get him off of the ship so they could continue their interrogation.

Kara

He didn't know where she was. Lee's heart ached and his body tensed when he remembered the last time he had seen her. It had been a short time before the chaos had started. Lee was not a religious man, but he found himself silently making a prayer that Kara would be smiling down at him when he opened his eyes, ready to tell him how she had defeated a whole baseship.

But all Lee saw when he opened his eyes was the light.

Perhaps he was dead?

Lee quickly dismissed that thought; if he was dead he wouldn't be in as much pain. He tried to open his eyes again, this time using all of the energy that he had left. The brightness stung them but after a few moments Lee found himself starting to focus. He saw a tall figure, which seemed to react to his sudden consciousness and rose what looked to be a gun, which was pointed close to Lee's head. Lee also heard the low drone of words being spoken, but he could not make them out. He became vaguely aware of another figure approaching him and then the sharp sting of something pricking his arm.

Then everything went black again.

**********************************************************************

Cain approached the glass wall that contained their prisoner. A few hours ago he had woken up briefly when he was being examined by the doctor. The marines had all sprung into action ready to shoot, but they needn't have bothered. The man could barely comprehend that they were there let alone jump up and attack.

"Admiral," said Dr. Phillips as he approached Cain.

"Yes doctor?"

"I need to get the prisoner to the lifestation. The bleeding seems to have stopped and the bullet went clean through, but I'm concerned that infection is hitting in. I have no idea how long he was drifting but he's lost a lot of blood and will need a transfusion."

"He's not moving anywhere until I am satisfied that he is not a cylon," said Cain sternly.

"He might die before we can find that out."

"I will not risk the safety of this crew."

Phillips nodded his head knowing it was useless to argue. "Can I at least treat him in the cell?"

Cain nodded her head briefly to indicate that she would allow this small measure of compassion. "Only use minimal resources, we're running low."

The doctor quickly entered the cell and begun his work. Cain watched as Phillips quickly attached the prisoner to a saline drip and injected the bag with a syringe. Still the prisoner did not stir.

"Sir?"

Cain turned quickly to find Showboat walking towards her, "yes Captain?"

"The marines have finished searching the raider, Sir. The ship's been declared safe. What are your orders?"

"I want that raider stripped for supplies then flush it."

"The Chief of the Deck wanted to run an idea past you first, Sir."

"Go on."

"The raider has a cylon transponder, so we could use it to get up close and personal to the cylons and they wouldn't even batter an eyelid. We could even fly a nuke in and right up their ass," said Showboat with a smile.

Cain liked the idea, "that would be a beautiful sight to see."

"Shall I get the Chief to look into it?"

"Yes, and tell him to bring me daily reports. Also see if he can work out how to duplicate their transponder signal."

"Yes Sir."

Showboat turned to leave the brig peering through the window to the cell as she went. Her eyes focused on the prisoner and then she let out an involuntary gasp. "Oh my Gods."

"What is it Captain?"

"I know him, was he found in the raider?"

"What do you know about him?" Cain asked sternly with her hands on her hips.

"He's not a cylon, I'm sure of that. We went to the academy together. I met his family once, at graduation. His father is Commander Adama."

Cain reacted immediately to that name. She didn't know Adama personally but she knew of his reputation, knew that he was a hero from the first cylon war. Cain also knew that the cylons generally didn't tend to have families, they were created not born. "Are you sure?"

"Positive, he birthed in the room opposite mine. Call sign Apollo, graduated in the top ten of the class. Last I heard he was serving on the Atlantia, his brother died before the attacks."

Cain didn't need any more convincing. She walked forward and pressed the intercom into the cell, "Get that man to lifestation now. Make sure a military contingent sticks with him at all times and continue with the cylon testing."

"Yes Sir," replied Phillips shaking his head slightly in frustration.

**************************************************************************

The lights did not seem so blinding when Lee felt consciousness returning to him and he attempted to open his eyes, still finding himself squinting at the unfamiliar brightness. He noticed that the pain in his arm had subsided and that now he felt decidedly numb down one side.

But Lee felt worse than he had done before. He was shivering but yet he felt like he was on fire, feeling the sweat pouring down his face. He closed his eyes again.

"Kara?" Lee called out weakly, hoping that she was nearby, waiting for him. "Kara," he said again when no-one responded.

Lee heard noises coming from a short distance away.

"He's delirious, keeps calling out the same woman's name."

"He's been doing that for past twelve, frakking hours."

_Twelve hours? _ Lee couldn't remember being awake until a few moments ago. He certainly didn't remember shouting out Kara's name repeatedly. Lee began to panic that he was in a lot more trouble than he had been on that baseship.

But surely he was still on that or another baseship wasn't he?

Lee had a feeling that he was no longer in the company of toasters. He prayed that he was on board the Galactica, but then where was his dad?

"Doc, he's waking up," heard Lee as he willed his eyes to open.

Everything slowly came into focus and he found himself in a room surrounded by people looking down at his bed vaguely recognising the sterile feel of the room.

He was definitely in a Colonial Fleet lifestation.

But he also knew that he was not on board the Galactica. The major clue was the absence of doc Cottle standing by the side of the bed, with a cigarette in his mouth, telling him to get the frak out of bed.

After a few moments Lee became aware of a female voice, "What's his status doctor?"

"He's over the worst of the fever now. In time I expect him to make a full recovery."

Lee opened his eyes even wider taking in the people surrounding his bed. There was a woman who he recognised as being an Admiral from her insignia. The male standing next to her, Lee guessed was the doctor. There were three other men, all of whom were holding guns. Lee knew straight away that they were marines.

He attempted to speak, opening his mouth slowly. His throat croaked slightly but he finally managed to get some words out.

"Where am I? Where's Kara?"

"What's your name and rank?" asked the woman curtly.

"Um, Captain Lee Adama Sir, callsign Apollo."

"Welcome to the Pegasus, Captain" said the woman without a smile, her tone etched with distrust. She did not seem pleased to have him aboard making Lee feel that even though he was on a Colonial ship, he wasn't completely safe.

"He needs to rest," said the doctor.

The woman nodded and then looked back down at Lee, "I'll be back tomorrow and then you can tell me how you came to be here and why."

The woman then turned and left abruptly flanked by two of the marines, the remaining marine keeping to his place beside the bed.

"I'm going to give you something to knock you out for tonight," said the doctor. "The Admiral will speak to you tomorrow."

Lee nodded weakly as the doctor injected a fluid into the IV that was attached to his arm. He felt the drugs hitting him quickly and he started to lose focus again. His last thought before he fell unconscious were of Kara.

How he longed to see her, to hold her in his arms again.

**********************************************************************

Lee woke up a lot faster than he had done the previous night. He even managed to sit up, with the assistance of the doctor. Overnight is arm had been put into a sling and was pulled tightly to his chest.

With his spare arm Lee attempted to eat the slop which had been provided. If he had thought the food on the Galactica was bad, this was ten times worse. It took him three mouthfuls to stop gagging.

After a few hours the Admiral came back into the lifestation. There was a large male with her who he recognised to be a Colonel. The Admiral nodded to Lee.

"Afternoon Captain, this is Colonel Fisk."

"Admiral Cain, Colonel" said Lee nodding to them in turn. He couldn't salute due to the sling but Cain seemed to forgive this lack of etiquette.

A nurse brought over two chairs so that they could sit down. Cain had her arms folded tightly, staring at Lee coldly.

"Why were you with the cylons?" She asked suddenly, getting straight to the hard questioning.

"I was captured," said Lee. He could not remember how long ago he was taken so he just guessed. "A couple of months ago I believe."

"You believe?"

"I'm not sure exactly how long ago it was."

"Who is Kara?"

Lee was taken aback not expecting the Admiral to ask about her. He realised that he must have mentioned her name more times than he remembered. "Lieutenant Kara Thrace and I were captured by the cylons together."

Cain nodded as Lee started coughing deeply. The doctor approached from the side with a drink of water. Lee took a few gulps, which helped to moisten his throat and stop the coughing.

"How did you survive the initial cylon attack? I understand from your files that you were stationed on the Atlantia at that time."

Earlier that morning Cain had spent some time finding the Captain's file on their computer systems, luckily they still had all of the Fleet's original records on board from before the attacks.

"I was stationed on the Atlantia, but I was sent to the Galactica for its decommissioning ceremony. I was escorting the then Secretary of Education back to Caprica when the cylons attacked."

Cain shifted in her seat but did not speak.

"How did you manage to evade the cylons?" asked Fisk, speaking for the first time.

"Most of the Fleet's ships were susceptible to the cylons; they were just switched off like a light. I was flying an old Mark II Viper so the cylons couldn't infiltrate her. I landed on the ship I was escorting and we managed to gather a number of other ships together." Lee took another sip of water and then continued, "We jumped to the Ragnar Anchorage where the Galactica was collecting ammunition."

"The Galactica survived?" Cain asked incredulously.

"Yes Sir, like the Mark II she wasn't networked so the cylons couldn't shut her down."

"So the Galactica has been out there fighting the cylons too?"

"Not quite Sir. My fa... Commander Adama decided that we had been defeated and that the only solution would be to leave the Colonies in search of a new home." Lee paused as he saw Cain frown at what he was saying.

"Go on Captain," she said.

"We protected the fleet so they could jump away and then we joined them."

"How many ships are we talking here?" asked Fisk.

"After the initial attacks we had around 50,000 people in the Fleet. I'm not sure what the numbers are now but I know we may have lost a few thousand. The President keeps a constant population count on her wall."

"The President?" asked Cain inquisitively.

"Laura Roslin."

"The former Secretary of Education? Frak me."

"The fleet were searching for a new home when Lieutenant Thrace and I were captured. I have no idea what the status of the fleet is at the moment or where they are," said Lee sadly.

"How many cylons have you found in the fleet?" asked Cain. Fisk handed her a number of photographs, which she then tossed on the bed face up.

Lee recognised the faces staring up at him. Flashes of his last moments on the baseship flooded throughout his mind blanking out everything around him.

"_Kara!" He shouted as the cylon, who likened himself to a doctor grabbed at his weakened arms pulling him backwards. "Kara!"_

_The lights overhead started flashing erratically and the ship lurched suddenly, quickly followed by the sound of gunfire echoing down the hallways. _

_A Sharon model came running around the corner followed by a blond mode. _

"_We've got to get out of here now, the centurions have turned and are firing upon us," yelled Sharon in a panic._

"_Get him to a raider," said the blond cylon indicating Lee._

_Lee continued to struggle as he was dragged along the floor to the raider. Unfortunately as they neared what Lee guessed was their hangar deck area a cylon, who he had previously known as the treacherous reporter D'Anna Biers, grabbed his legs helping the male cylon drag him on board the raider._

"_No!" yelled Lee. "Where's Kara? I want to see Kara now! What the frak have you done to her?"_

_Lee struggled violently until D'Anna lost her grip causing Lee to fall to the floor. The male cylon was lifting Lee back up by his arms when the centurions rounded the corner into the hangar deck. Before he knew what was happening the raider was being fired upon with a barrage of bullets. D'Anna fell down dead to the ground as the bullets riddled her body. But soon after Lee suddenly felt a searing pain strike through his body as he was knocked backwards, the bullet ripping clean through his shoulder._

_Lee tried to stand but he was blinded by the pain as it coursed through his body. He vaguely remembered the raider taking off, exiting the baseship and then jumping away. When he had started to come around the blond cylon and Sharon were dead and D'Anna was nowhere to be seen. The male cylon looked injured but he seemed to have taken to controlling the raider._

_Despite his injuries Lee forced himself to stand up, using the remainder of his energy. He grabbed the heaviest object he could find with his weak arm and slowly walked up behind the unassuming cylon as quietly as he could. Lee didn't think twice before he hit the cylon around the head with all of his strength. He continued to hit him until the last of his energy was expired._

_The cylon was dead._

_Lee glanced out of the window of the raider breathing heavily. There was nothing but empty space ahead of him but he was too weak to reach for the raider's controls. The last thing Lee fully remembered were his knees buckling and his body falling to the floor. _

_He drifted in and out of consciousness until the darkness finally took hold._

"Captain," said Cain. Lee blinked rapidly suddenly remembering that he was in lifestation recalling the events that had brought him there.

"Sorry Sir."

"Shall I take it from your silence that you have seen these cylons before?"

"Yes Sir. The blond cylon was one of my captors, another model was hiding in the Fleet but she disappeared." Lee then pointed to another picture. "This model, we knew as Sharon, infiltrated the ship as a raptor pilot; she was caught after she shot the Commander point blank in the chest."

Cain felt the rage flowing through her at this news, "did he survive?"

"Yes Sir," said Lee with a small smile. He did not think it necessary to mention the pregnant Sharon currently holed up in their brig. "This cylon," he said pointing to the third picture. "I remember from the baseship I was being held on. I only saw him briefly but from what he looks like I believe it is the same model Lieutenant Thrace met on Caprica."

"On Caprica?"

"Yes, she ah, she had reason to return to the planet on her own. She saw that cylon there."

Cain found herself intensely curious, "what had happened to Caprica?"

"Starbuck said it was empty, most of the buildings were still standing, but there was nobody there. The cylons had cleared all of the bodies. But there were survivors, not many but a few." Lee felt a pang of jealousy when he recalled that there had been survivors. He cleared his throat before adding, "Lieutenant Thrace was making plans to go back and rescue them."

Lee felt the pang of resentment shoot through him again. He had no idea why he had told Cain about the survivors, but he felt that he owed something to Kara to mention it. Not that he expected Cain to do anything.

"Good," she said, which surprised Lee. "I think the first job you should have when you're well enough is to come up with a plan to jump back to Caprica as soon as possible."

Lee was dumbstruck.

During the months before they were taken Lee had been helping Kara work out a plan to go back, his mind alternating between hoping they failed and hoping that they would get the chance to rescue as many people as they could. Lee also knew that Kara needed to do it, for her own peace of mind, knowing that the guilt of leaving anyone behind was eating at her.

Lee had also come to the realisation that he would do anything for Kara; even if it meant losing her to _him_, Lee would do it just to see her happy. Desire struck throughout his body as he remembered the week before they were taken. The way she had felt in his arms. The way she made him feel when he was inside her.

He also remembered that during this week Kara had stopped making her plans to go back to Caprica, not in a heartless way, but in acceptance like she had made her peace with it.

Tears pooled in Lee's eyes and his heart ached as he remembered the last thing Kara had said to him as he was dragged away...

"_I love you."_

Despite being in the company of the Admiral and Colonel, Lee couldn't help the tears that flooded down his face, his lips quivering in the attempt to stop them. He turned on his side to hide his weakness, vaguely aware of his visitors standing up and leaving him to cry on his own.

**AN: Okay now be honest, how many people saw that one coming? I promise you that nothing I am doing is for shock value but it's just my frakked up imagination :-P Thanks again for all the great reviews!!**


	14. A Glimpse of the Future Part Two

Chapter 13

Dr Caroline Richards sat in her home swirling a large glass of red wine and reading a book in a big comfy chair. She was exhausted after such a gruelling month since the ship had crashed not far from her home. Caroline was glad for a few hours of alone time at home so she could tidy and catch up with her book.

Her home was a small cottage located a few miles from the base. It was old but she had decorated it throughout with modern fixtures and fittings. Fluffy the cat was her only constant companion.

Caroline was currently sitting in her study, surrounded by books and her numerous certificates of qualifications and achievements adorning the walls. She had trained as a medical doctor and practiced in a London hospital for five years before she got her job at the military base. She had given up practice in order to help fulfil a life-long dream.

Caroline had dreamt of exploring space since she was a little girl, a dream, which had always seemed so far away until recently.

When Caroline had left the military base earlier their guests were just going to bed. Brunette had been spending everyday with the scientists, who seemed to be making a lot of progress with the language barrier. Caroline, however, was concerned that the others were getting restless having realised that they were not moving from their rooms anytime soon. Their initial calmness was mutating into frustration and sometimes anger. That morning Legs had to be knocked out after he put his fist through the television, requiring him to receive ten stitches.

Caroline put down her book and made a note on her pad that the guests required some materials to keep them entertained. She had no intention for her guests to be unhappy, in fact if she had her choice she would let them go and beg to be taken with them. Caroline felt the guilt strike her when she remembered the forlorn look upon Blue Eye's face when she had done her nightly rounds. If Caroline had hypothesised correctly he and Blondie were both feeling the separation from their children, a feeling which she could understand but not fully appreciate.

It took a few moments for Caroline to realise that there was a constant knock coming from her front door, she was even more shocked when the knock turned to a constant banging. Her initial shock turned to a near faint when Caroline saw Major Ford standing on her front porch with a bottle of whiskey in his hand. He was clearly drunk.

"Ford?" asked Caroline, attempting to mask the shock in her voice.

Ford's words were slurred when he answered, "I've told you on numerous occasions to call me John."

"John," Caroline repeated with a blush. "How did you know where I live?"

"I have my ways," he said with a drunken smile. He gestured towards the house, "may I?"

"Um, sure."

Caroline stepped aside to allow Ford to stumble through the door and into the lounge. She could smell the alcohol on his breath. "You're drunk."

"Yes, yes I am," he replied as if he was very pleased with himself.

"Can I ask why?"

Ford flopped into one of Caroline's armchairs and then held up the bottle of whiskey, "because I've drunken about half of this bottle of whiskey."

Caroline folded her arms in front of her and frowned, he knew damn well that was not what she meant. Ford seemed to sense her displeasure, appearing to sober up for a few moments.

"I thought, I thought that their coming to us," meaning their guests, "would bring peace and a new era to the World."

"John," Caroline said softly, sitting on the arm of his chair. "John, this isn't Star Trek, its reality. Did you really believe that the World would welcome them with open arms and without suspicion?"

Ford didn't answer her instead he stared intently at Caroline and said, "God you're beautiful."

If Caroline wasn't shocked enough at hearing Ford say those words, she nearly fell off the side of the chair when Ford stroked his hand gently down her face.

Ford seemed undeterred by her apparent disbelief, "come to bed with me."

"What!?!" exclaimed Caroline standing up and backing away from the chair, "are you crazy?"

"I want to fuck your brains out, come to bed," replied Ford bluntly.

"You're drunk Ford, you can sleep it off on the couch."

Ford stood up suddenly making Caroline jump. He walked up to her causing her to breathing to deepen. She could smell the alcohol on his breath as he stroked a strand of her dark hair behind her ear.

Caroline could have sworn that her heart stopped beating when he placed a gentle kiss on her lips.

She swiftly broke off the kiss, "I can't do this."

"Shit," exclaimed Ford stepping back slightly. "You're a fucking tease, you know that? Ever since we met you've been making moon eyes at me..."

Ford did not get to finish his sentence before Caroline gave him a swift slap around the face and then stormed away. A few shocked moments later Ford heard what he guessed was a door slamming upstairs. He slumped back slowly into the comfy chair mumbling to himself, gulping back more of the whiskey.

***************************************************************************

The next morning Caroline was awoken by a soft knock at her bedroom door followed by a gentle creaking as it was opened. She immediately recognised the voice of Ford as he entered the room.

"Carry?"

She sat up in bed and looked over towards the door. Ford looked decidedly worse for wear, his clothes were crinkled and he had bloodshot eyes. In his hand he had a mug of what smelt like freshly ground coffee.

"I thought you might want a cup," said Ford meekly. "I certainly did."

"So you thought barging into my bedroom would be the best way to apologise?"

"Erm," suddenly Ford felt decidedly hot. "Sorry I, I didn't think. I'll take it downstairs."

Ford had just reached the door when Caroline finally felt pity for him, "Hey, look, I just don't want you to see my frilly night gown; I'll be downstairs in ten, okay?"

When Caroline went downstairs she was in a warm robe and was immediately hit by the smell of breakfast cooking. Ford looked like he had gone all out. There was bacon, eggs, sausages, slices of toast and beans all served out onto one of her large plates. Pity it was her food he was cooking, but still the gesture was there.

"So, are you going to tell me what last night was about?" asked Caroline as she sat at her table and began to drink her coffee.

Ford brought over the freshly cooked food and sat down, "I am so sorry I was way out of line. I don't know what was wrong with me, well I do, but it's stupid."

"More stupid then arriving at my home drunk and asking to go to bed with me?"

"Did I really do that?" groaned Ford, "it's all a bit of a blur."

"You did," said Caroline.

"Shit, I am so sorry."

"So, do you want to talk about it?"

"It's like what I kinda remember saying last night. I had so many delusional expectations about what it would be like when we finally found aliens. I mean did you hear about what we found on the satellite?"

"I've only heard a little, the _powers that be_ like to keep some information away from me," said Caroline shrugging.

"Well we found what looks like a big ship, a hundred times bigger than the one that crashed. We have no doubt that it is probably armed and no doubt that we would lose a fight against it. The United Nations has gone nuts; they want our guests interrogated in any way possible to ensure we obtain information about their weapons technology."

Caroline couldn't help the tears that pooled in her eyes, "I will not be involved in torture."

"We're hoping it won't come to that. We've managed to calm them down enough into agreeing to allow us to attempt diplomatic methods first. Hopefully we can get our guests to co-operate. The whole situation just got to me and before I knew it I had downed half a bottle of my vintage whiskey." Ford paused a few moments before adding, "I really am sorry."

"I know."

Caroline had always been able to forgive Ford's often gruff behaviour. She still remembered the first time that she met him; he had been swearing and shouting at a computer that refused to work, too stubborn to call in one of the Tech guys. Caroline had fallen for him immediately, regardless of his brashness. From then on they had fallen into an easy friendship but Caroline had always wanted more.

They listened to the morning news as they ate their breakfast and finished their coffee together, only stopping for idle conversation. When they had finished it was 07.30am and the start of work was looming.

"I'm going to get ready for work; you'd better go home and wash before you face a Court Marshal for being drunk and disorderly."

"Yes, Sir," smiled Ford as he gave a mock salute. He then grabbed his coat, which had been flung over a chair, and walked out of the house leaving Caroline to ponder her feelings.

**********************************************************************

When Caroline arrived at the base there were a number of scientists running around everywhere, it looked like something was wrong.

"What's going on?" she asked urgently.

One of the scientists stopped and approached her, "Legs has kicked off again, we're going to have to move him down to the basement area with the robot."

"Shit," muttered Caroline, she feared that something like this was going to happen. In reality she knew it was inevitable, people could only take so much. She was shocked that their guests hadn't kicked off sooner.

"I hear the aliens are restless," said Ford entering the room looking like he'd had a shower and change of clothes.

They both watched as they saw the knock-out gas being pumped into Leg's room. He certainly put up a fight as he lost consciousness, banging his arms and legs against the walls repeatedly. Caroline could tell from the expressions on Blondie and Mr Robot's faces, whose rooms shared a wall with Legs, that they could hear the commotion. She was intrigued at the way they were pretending not to hear what was going on.

"Why is it always Legs and not the others?" asked Caroline.

"He obviously didn't listen in _prisoner of war_ class," replied Ford.

"Sorry?"

"First rule of capture is to never let your captors know your weaknesses. Frankly I'm shocked that some of them were wearing items showing that they might be married, one of the most persuasive of techniques is to use your loved ones against you."

"So that's why they are so quiet?"

"That would be my guess. They don't want to give anything away; they certainly don't want us to learn their names or anything about them. But you can tell from their faces that they're far from happy."

"Hopefully when we get talking to them things will get better," said Caroline hopefully.

"Hopefully, how is that going anyway?"

"Apparently last night the computer worked out that Brunette had told the scientist to stick his card up his arse," said Caroline seriously. "So we're making progress."

Ford couldn't help but laugh, closely followed by Caroline whose composure also broke. Everyone in the room looked round and watched as the two friends bent over in fits of giggles.

*********************************************************************

A few hours into his shift Ford decided that he needed a break from the politicians, so he went down to the cargo area where they were holding all of the items that they had found on the ship, including the ship itself.

Two workmen were busy underneath the ship attempting to work out its workings and fuel sources.

Laid out on large tables were various items each labelled with vague guesses as to what they were. There were six smaller tables for each guest containing items of property found upon each of them.

There was a mixture of uniforms on display. Brunette and Legs had been wearing what looked to be a space suit and the scientists had also found two helmets that completed the set. Checks had been completed that showed the suits were airtight and would protect its wearer from all types of elements, including water and fire. In space flight it appeared that the suits attached to oxygen tanks on the ship, behind the two pilots seats.

All of the aliens had been carrying what looked like guns when they crashed. Ford had a fun day working out how each weapon worked but he had to admit to being a little disappointed that they fired bullets, having set his heart on a ray gun.

Ford loved looking at their equipment as he had always been an engineer at heart ever since childhood and had studied this subject at University. He had decided to join the army after his parents were suddenly killed in a car accident when he was 21. The army was his way of escaping but he also managed to make a career out of it. Ford couldn't believe his luck when he had landed his job at the base. Unfortunately his job usually involved paper shifting but the last month had made all the boredom worth it.

He let out a small whistle when he looked at Blondie's table; no matter how many times he looked at her inventory it still shocked him. He'd never met a woman as armed to the teeth as Blondie had been. She had been wearing a holster on each leg, both of which contained a handgun. She had also been carrying a larger gun worn slung over her shoulder and when she was being searched they had found a large knife hidden in her boot. The uniform Blondie had been wearing was similar to what the robot was wearing, which was all black with a combat vest and matching helmet.

Ford smiled to himself and then walked over to the larger tables. There were a variety of tools and pieces of equipment, which they knew they wouldn't be able to fully decipher without the help of the guests.

The scream that suddenly echoed through the room shook Ford to the core. He turned abruptly in time to see smoke coming from the ship. One of the workmen had jumped out from underneath covered in what looked like soot. Ford ran over and helped him pull the other workman out, who was clearly injured and not moving.

"Get the medics in here!" yelled Ford.

Fortunately it only took the medics a few minutes to get to the injured workman. Ford looked on helplessly as they lifted him onto a stretcher and rushed him away.

"What happened?" asked Ford turning to the remaining workman.

"He was just looking at a part, looked harmless enough. Next minute there were sparks everywhere like he's being electrocuted."

"Shit, no-one touches anything else until I say so okay?"

"Yes Sir. Here's the part he had removed before the accident."

The workman handed him what appeared to be a panel with some symbols written across the front, which Ford could only guess were some sort of warning.

Ford swore to himself, he knew that this incident would cause another influx of phone calls from the politicians. He then said a private prayer to himself that the workman would be okay.

**********************************************************************

Caroline walked deep down into the basement area of the base. In her hand she carried a package containing large sheets of plain white paper and some soft crayons. Guilt had been eating at her soul all day, guilt that her guests were unhappy and restless. Brunette seemed to be the least fidgety since she had been occupied with the language testing, so Caroline guessed that by giving their guests something to do it may help them relax.

Unfortunately the only items that could pass health and safety precautions was paper and crayons, even a pencil could be used to injure themselves.

So far the items had been accepted graciously. Brunette had screwed up all the sheets up tightly together making a rudimentary ball. She had then proceeded to bounce it clumsily against the wall. Blue Eyes had used it to write a long composition but the scientists had no idea what he was writing. Blondie had sketched and doodled over all of the sheets of paper. It didn't appear that anything specific had been drawn but she obviously had a lot of artistic talent. Mr Robot had made the paper into little aeroplanes and proceeded to throw them about the room.

Caroline approached the rooms holding the robot and Legs. Their rooms were similar to the rooms occupied by the other guests, but they were much deeper down in the heart of the base. They also didn't get a television or separate bathroom. All they had was a metal toilet and a sink in one corner. There was also no sense of privacy. The rooms each had a see-through partition, which reminded Caroline of Hannibal Lector's cell in _Silence of the Lambs_.

As she neared the rooms she saw that the robot was resting patiently on her cot. Legs, on the other hand, was pacing around the room mindlessly. The fortunate aspect of these rooms was that the occupants could see each other, which seemed to have calmed Legs to a degree. At least he wasn't hitting inanimate objects at random anymore.

Caroline smiled as a hatch was opened in the robot's cell and she placed the paper and crayons inside. She was shocked to receive a small smile back from the robot as she took the items back to her cot and began to examine them. As Caroline watched it begin to draw she made a mental not to call _her_ "a robot" or "it" anymore.

**********************************************************************

Towards the end of the day Caroline had made her way back up the stairs, where she found Ford looking in on one of the consultation rooms. Brunette was inside going over some more cards with one of the scientists.

"I hear there was accident earlier?" asked Caroline as she joined Ford at the observation glass.

"Yeah, a worker was injured by something on the ship, gave him a nasty shock. The medics said that thankfully he should fully recover within a few days," replied Ford.

"That's good to hear."

"Was the paper and crayons your idea?"

Caroline nodded, "I wanted them to have something new to interact with."

"I would pay good money to see what Blue Eyes is writing," grinned Ford.

"According to the scientists that may not be far off."

"Really?" asked Ford with avid curiosity.

"They're planning on testing it out today, anything you want to ask to test it out?"

"Yeah, ask her to translate what this says," said Ford walking over to a nearby table and coming back with the panel he had been given earlier. "It may help with the treatment of the injured workman."

Caroline and Ford were made to wait an agonising half an hour before they were finally given the chance to enter the consultation room.

This was one of the moments that Caroline had dreamt about all her life, making her heart started to beat faster and faster as they entered the room. After seeing the woman on an examination table and then only through a glass window it was very surreal seeing her sitting there in the flesh.

After a few moments Caroline realised that no-one had spoken and that she was just standing there staring at the woman. Brunette looked like she was starting to feel uncomfortable but Caroline still didn't know what to say.

Ford seemed to sense that Caroline was struck dumb so he spoke up first.

"Hello," he said with a touch of nervousness.

Brunette looked puzzled at first and then jumped slightly when the computer translated what Ford had said.

After a few moments of deathly silence Caroline added, "Welcome to Earth." She knew it was a lame thing to say but somehow it felt appropriate.

After the translation Brunette finally spoke, "hi."

It wasn't groundbreaking, but it was a start. They had agreed not to question Brunette about anything substantive as she had done enough for them already. Caroline had hypothesised that their guests were from the military so they wanted Brunette to tell them who the ranking officer was.

Ford placed the panel on the table and asked kindly, "what does this say?"

Brunette seemed shocked by the question, like she was expecting something else. She grabbed the panel and the computer again translated her words, "it says _danger: do not remove panel without specialist equipment._" She then tossed the panel back on the table with a clatter. She resolutely crossed her arms in front of her chest letting Caroline and Ford both know that she would not be answering any more questions.

"Okay, thank you," said Ford undeterred by Brunette's resolve. "You're safe here and can go back to your room in a minute but can we ask you one more question first?"

Brunette didn't respond so Ford tossed the photographs of all of the guests onto the table in front of her. "I guess you are in some sort of military, so who is in charge?"

After the translation, Brunette seemed to consider whether or not to answer the question. After a few moments she reached out her hand and pointed at two pictures.

************************************************************************

Later that evening Caroline was sat back in her study in her comfy chair. She smiled privately to herself reminiscing about how much had changed since she had last sat in this chair. It was hard to believe it was only 24 hours ago.

Caroline was suddenly struck with an intense feeling of déjà vu when a knock came at her front door. The sight before as she opened the door nearly made her burst out in raucous laughter. Ford was standing on the porch with a bottle of wine, a goofy grin spread across his face.

"I promise you I am not drunk but I thought we should celebrate together."

"Sounds good to me," replied Caroline also smiling. She took the bottle of wine into the kitchen, popped the cork and filled two glasses to the brim. Ford took one of the glasses as Caroline raised the other. "To our guests and to our first communications with them."

Ford smiled and then gently knocked his glass against hers. They both took a sip of the wine and then smiled at each other.

"So when do we start the questioning?" asked Caroline.

"In two days. I get to talk to Blue Eyes but Simms managed to weasel his way into being the one to question Blondie. I want you to keep an eye on that interview. I have a feeling Blondie is a lot more volatile then she looks and I really don't want Simms provoking her."

Caroline nodded in agreement and then took another sip of her wine, "do you want to join me for dinner?"

"Thought you'd never ask."

Caroline and Ford relaxed down into the couch, which the previous night had served as Ford's bed. Caroline ordered a curry, which went down nicely with the wine. As the evening progressed they both fell into easy conversation, about what they had seen in the past month and the possibilities of what they could witness in the future.


	15. Too Many Secrets

Chapter 14

Karl entered the lifestation after a long visit to see Sharon, who was now six months pregnant and really starting to show. It was also four weeks since Kara had been rescued from the baseship and brought back home to the Galactica. Despite searching the whole of the baseship they had not found Lee, which had hit Adama the hardest. He had taken it so badly that he had not returned to lifestation since Kara's secret was revealed.

Karl still didn't know if Kara was aware of her secret, according to Cottle she probably did not, making it all the sadder.

Karl sat down in his usual chair beside her bed and made himself comfortable.

Kara had not changed much in the four weeks since her return. She was still in a coma and breathing on a ventilator with tubes and wires coming out of her in various directions. Karl noticed however, that a little colour had come back to Kara's cheeks making her look healthier and more alive. The tubes had also been feeding her food, so her face had begun to fill out again from the sunken look it had before. If it wasn't for the tubing anyone would assume that she was just sleeping soundly.

Karl leaned over and gently stroked Kara's hand, "evening sleepyhead."

As always he did not get a response, but he had come to expect this now. For the first week he had held his breath in the hope that she would suddenly tell him to "frak off" and each time he had been disappointed.

"So I guess you want to know the news of the fleet?" began Karl, "not much really. Kat moved into the senior officer's quarters, much to everyone's annoyance. She's been a nightmare recently and insisted on moving in when she was made a lieutenant. Her flying is nearly up to your standard, well not quite there, but she's determined to be the best. The top gun mug isn't enough for her at the moment so I tell you what, you need to wake up now so you can show her who the best really is."

Karl knew he was kidding himself with this latest bribe, even if Kara did wake up she would not be flying anytime soon.

"We're still heading towards what we think is Earth, nothing new there really, we're still lost. Sharon asked me to send her best and to say hi."

Karl sighed and then leaned back in his chair grabbing a book from the table beside him, "so yesterday we finished _The Olympia Odyssey_, the last of your stash of books I'm afraid." Every day, since her return, Karl had been reading to Kara all of the books he had found in her belongings. For as long as Karl had known Kara he was still shocked to find all of the books, clueless to her penchant for fantasy novels.

"I found this book amongst Kat's belongings," Karl explained as he looked at the blurb on the back. "It's a classic romance story, so here's my new deal. You wake up now and I won't have to subject you to it."

Karl waited for a moment to ensure that Kara didn't suddenly wake up and shove the book down his throat.

"No...? Well you can't say I didn't give you ample warning. As I said it's a classic written about 300 years ago, about a young woman from Picon who rejected a poor pilot and then pined for him for eight years while he was away fighting the war on Sagittaron. He returns and she finds him back in her life, romance ensues, blah blah blah. You owe me for this one Starbuck."

Karl settled down and began reading out the story for Kara. He had become a fan of the fantasy novels Kara owned since reading them to her but he doubted anything could make him a fan of classic romance.

************************************************************************

_Lifestation – Four Weeks Earlier_

Adama, Roslin and Karl all sat patiently inside the Galactica's conference room and waited patiently for Cottle to arrive. It had been 24 hours since Kara's sudden and unexpected reappearance and everyone was enduring the agonising wait for her complete medical status.

No-one spoke as they waited causing an eerie atmosphere to linger in the room. Adama looked tired after spending the entire night at Kara's bedside, holding her hand and praying that his marines would find his son alive. They had found a number of items to indicate that he had at one time been on board, but there was no clear indication of when he had ceased to be imprisoned there. The two cages they had found was the only evidence that two people had been held captive.

Adama felt the guilt course through him, replaying over and over in his mind what Kara and Lee had been subjected to. He had failed them both; he should never have given up the search.

The occupants of the room all turned quickly as Cottle finally entered looking decidedly tired. He was not alone, a man walked in after him dressed in a long jacket and sunglasses.

"This is Romo Lampkin," said Cottle pre-empting the inevitable question. "He's a lawyer who might be able to help us with a few aspects of Captain Thrace's future care."

Adama nodded his consent, even though he had no idea what they would possibly need a lawyer for. "What's her prognosis Cottle?"

"Same as yesterday," answered Cottle bluntly. "No signs of her waking up anytime soon. We've had the results of some of her blood work, which haven't shed much light. They indicate that at one point she had been given hallucinogenic drugs, but only in minor amounts, nothing to cause alarm, certainly not enough to cause a coma. I have got Ishay running a number of other standard tests. After speaking to Lieutenant Agathon I thought it best to turn to our cylon expert."

Cottle nodded towards Karl in understanding. They had asked Sharon to share her insights on cylon torture methods and experimentation. At first she had not been very forthcoming but her concern for Kara had changed her mind, but had insisted on telling Adama herself.

"There are a few issues we have to address first with regard to Captain Thrace, which is why I brought the lawyer," began Cottle and then lit a cigarette. The other occupants of the room remained silent in anticipation of what the doctor was going to reveal. "Before the attacks, whenever a new crew member came on board the Galactica I ensured that a full physical was undertaken, as well as taking instructions on their medical directives. When Thrace first arrived here I asked her if any artificial measures should ever be used to prolong her life."

Karl and Adama both shifted in their seats, they had a bad feeling where this conversation was going.

Cottle continued, "I recorded her exact response, she said and I quote, _I'm not going to live off a frakking machine, doc._"

Adama sighed, "Can her wishes be overruled?" As much as he respected Kara's resolution, he could not imagine her just giving up now after everything she had been through.

"Would she survive without a ventilator?" asked Roslin in an attempt to wash over Adama's brash response.

"We have conducted tests that suggest there is brain activity," replied Cottle. "As far as we can tell, if she woke up tomorrow she should make a full recovery as there doesn't appear to be any permanent damage. However, she is very weak and may not be able to maintain breathing on her own."

"Is her condition below the criteria established in her medical directives?" asked Roslin.

Lampkin, who had been quietly watching the proceedings from the other side of the room, finally spoke up. "The directives are very plain, no artificial methods of sustaining life. The Captain clearly stated that she did not want to live off a machine."

"Who can overrule this decision?" reiterated Adama.

"Well before the attacks it would have gone before a Court," began Lampkin before he was interrupted by Adama.

"We don't have a Court system anymore, but we still have a President."

Everyone's eyes turned towards Roslin expecting answers or orders from her, but she was silent. She had been contemplating this scenario in her head before the meeting had begun, knowing that the issue of sustaining life would become an issue. In her mind Kara had given her the answer.

"As much as we value every member of this fleet," said Roslin. "I believe we should respect her wishes. If Captain Thrace wants to fight then I have no doubt she will do so without a ventilator."

Adama seemed cast down by Roslin's decision hoping that she would have ordered the opposite.

"I believe that is all you were needed for Mr Lampkin, thank you for coming," added Roslin as she stood up and held out her hand.

Lampkin stood up and took her hand, "Madame President." He then promptly left the room closing the hatch behind him.

Cottle seemed satisfied by Roslin's decision. Despite thinking that Kara was a pain in the ass, he had always respected her and wanted to respect her wishes. He was about to start the rest of his report when there was a knock at the hatch. After a short pause Ishay entered the room, looking sheepish and with a clipboard in her hand.

"I'm sorry to disturb you doctor Cottle but I thought you would want to see these test results urgently," she said in a resolute voice. Her eyes looked intently at Cottle, telling him that he needed to see what was written on the clipboard straight away.

Cottle lit another cigarette, thinking he would probably need it and strode over to Ishay. He took the clipboard and studied it, when he turned to the second page he found exactly what he needed to know.

Cottle looked up suddenly at Ishay, "are you serious?"

"You told me to run everything, so I did."

"Frak, how many times did you run the test?"

"Five times."

Cottle nodded sadly, "we need to get her prepped for an examination immediately."

Ignoring the other occupants of the room he paused briefly, sighed and then followed Ishay hastily out of the room.

Adama, Roslin and Karl sat still for a few moments and then each of them silently stood and headed for lifestation, the concern for Kara's health heavy in their hearts.

************************************************************************

When they entered lifestation Cottle was already wheeling some equipment over to Kara's bedside. He had also donned a surgical gown making Karl's stomach turn in knots with worry.

"Doc, what is going on?" ordered Adama stepping out of Ishay's way as she opened up a fresh paper blanket and laid it over Kara's torso. She then lowered the bed linen uncovering her to just below her abdomen, her upper half was covered with the paper so that only Kara's stomach and abdomen could be seen.

"Doc?" Adama asked again.

"Bill," said Roslin putting her hand out to Adama so that he would move away. "Let Cottle do his work."

Adama looked on feeling useless as Cottle came over to Kara's bed and leaned over her, pressing his hand firmly against her abdomen. His usual cigarette had been discarded.

"Frak, her abdomen is distended, how the frak did I miss this?" he said angrily to himself.

"The state she was in, no-one could not have thought this possible," said Ishay trying to reassure the doctor. "I don't know what possessed me to do the test in the first place."

As he watched on helplessly Adama was beginning to feel frustrated. No-one was telling him what the frak was going on with Kara, was she dying or had the cylons done something to her? Adama wanted answers, the agitation at not knowing eating at him.

Adama kept silent, despite his irritation, watching Cottle as he poured some gel over Kara's abdomen. He then spread it around with a piece of machinery from his equipment cart. Adama had only seen this piece of machinery twice in his life, the first time was when Carolanne had gone for a scan when she was pregnant with Lee, and the second was when he had seen Cottle scan for injuries on a number of crew members when the cylons first attacked.

After a few moments Cottle turned on a monitor, studying it as he moved the machinery around Kara's abdomen. After a few minutes Cottle stopped moving the wand and frowned at the screen in front of him. "Frak," he cursed.

"Is that it?" asked Ishay as she leant in to look at the monitor. A piece of paper began feeding out of the machine but Cottle kept his concentration focused on the screen.

Meanwhile Adama's patience had worn thin, "what is _it _doc?" he demanded gruffly.

Cottle looked up, an expression of concern washing over his face, "a heartbeat." He then flipped a switch allowing the steady, deep echoing rhythm of Kara's baby fill the room.

"Oh my Gods," said Roslin in a shocked voice.

"How is that possible?" asked Adama, "after everything that she's been through."

"It's a frakking miracle if you ask me," replied Cottle pointing to a small blob on the screen. "But there it is."

As Adama looked on at the monitor in awe, a horrific thought struck through him that he almost couldn't fathom the words to ask, "Is it cylon?"

Cottle thought this scenario through for a few moments and then looked back at the screen. "By the size of the foetus I would estimate the age to be about 10-12 weeks, so depending on her last cycle, I would estimate conception to have been just before or around the time she disappeared."

Karl suppressed the small gasp that wanted to escape from his lips, knowing that if he didn't he would be scrutinised by everyone else standing around the bed. The last words Kara had said to him resounded throughout his mind.

"_I'm frakking the CAG." _

"Surely not," thought Karl. "No way, she must have been on the contraceptive shots, it's impossible." But then who else could it have been? Karl knew Kara well enough to know when she was having multiple fraks, having being witness to this scenario many times at basic training. But he had a feeling that Apollo was the only person she was seeing before she disappeared, something in her voice had told him that. The secret yearning she omitted, her secret happiness.

***********************************************************************

Adama sat in his quarters feeling completely bemused; of all the results he had been expecting, a pregnant Starbuck was not one of them. A number of thoughts flooded his mind, was it human or cylon? How was she going to give birth whilst in a coma? Was it a boy or girl? Who was the father?

They had spent a number of hours with Cottle discussing their options. With the exception of Karl, they had all been in agreement that if the baby was cylon then it should be terminated. They all agreed that, if this was the case, Kara would never be told that she was ever pregnant. As cruel as this seemed, everyone had an idea what it would do to her if she ever found out that the cylons had violated her in such a way. Adama had read the report of what happened to Kara on Caprica, what she had been through and what the cylons had tried to do to her. He would do anything he could to protect her from this pain.

About half an hour ago Sharon Valerii had been brought to Adama's quarters so she could share what she knew about the cylons. What she had told him did not encourage Adama in the slightest. Sharon had explained how many of the cylon models were obsessed with finding out what the hybrid, who controlled the ship, was saying. Many cylons had attempted to hook themselves up to the hybrid but had been killed instantly, the influx of information frying their brains. Sharon had no idea how they had managed to a link a human to the hybrid and had no idea how she could help Kara. Adama was bitterly disappointed.

Adama rubbed his temples in the vain hope of purging the thoughts whirling his mind. Cottle had demanded everyone to leave the lifestation so he could clean Kara up and make some enquiries. His first job would be to find out if the baby was human.

Adama knew that there was only one person in the fleet who could undertake this task and he really did not want to use him. Adama knew, however that he did not have a choice in the matter. He looked across the room, his eyes capturing Roslin's who was sat on his couch.

Roslin smiled slightly, "Baltar should be able to get some answers for us. I imagine he will use the same method he used on Sharon Valerii's baby."

"Hmmm," replied Adama. "What if the baby is human?"

"Then she'll bring the baby to term."

Adama smiled slightly and then leaned back in his chair, deep in thought.

***************************************************************************

Karl paced awkwardly back and forth outside Cottle's office, debating silently to himself whether or not to go inside. Baltar had come to the lifestation and taken a sample of amniotic fluid from Kara. After talking to himself for a few minutes he had said that he needed a few hours to run some tests but seemed hopeful for a result.

Meanwhile Karl's conscience was eating away at him. During their discussion with Cottle they had spoken in length about the possibility that the baby could be cylon. Karl was very vocal in his belief that it did not matter if the foetus was part cylon it was still an innocent baby. The topic had then turned to the likelihood that the baby was human and who the father was.

Kara's relationship with Anders back on Caprica was no secret but Cottle stated that it would virtually impossible for him to be the father. Not only was the foetus too young to be his, but Cottle had stated that the amount of radiation on Caprica would have made the chances of Anders being able to have children as likely as Baltar being completely sane.

The discussion had then turned to "who else could possibly be the father." All eyes had then turned to Karl for an answer. Kara's alleged promiscuity had been a rumour around the Galactica since she had gotten there, which Karl personally knew to be false. He could feel however, that Cottle and Adama suspected there could be a number of suspects. Karl wished that he could put them straight but to do so would cause a frak load of trouble, so he had taken the easy way out and just shrugged.

It wasn't until everyone had left that Karl considered that Cottle may need to know this information. His conscience had been hit after Cottle explained that it was important they find out who the father is due to some rare blood-type incompatibility problems that sometimes arose in pregnancy. Karl didn't understand the science behind what Cottle was saying but sensed its importance.

Karl was torn however, between trying to help Kara and not wanting to break her secret into the open.

"Agathon you've been wearing a hole in my floor for the last ten minutes."

Karl spun round quickly to see Cottle walking towards his office, a cigarette hanging out of his mouth as normal.

"Care to tell me _why _you're blocking the door to my office?"

"Erm," now Cottle was in front of him Karl wasn't sure he could even begin to tell him about Lee and Kara. "It's nothing, never mind."

Karl had started to walk away when he heard Cottle muttering under his breath and the loud clang of his office door opening. "You're not getting away that easily Lieutenant, in."

Cottle motioned for Karl to enter, letting him know that he had no option in the matter. Karl silently acquiesced and entered the small room, immediately feeling uncomfortable.

Cottle, ignoring Karl's apparent unease, cut straight to the chase. "So what information do you have about Thrace?"

Karl looked up in shock, "how did... sorry?"

"I assume that since today we found out that Thrace is going to be bringing offspring into this world, Gods help us, that you must have some information pertaining to her situation."

"Er, yeah, maybe, I don't know really. I mean if the baby is cylon..."

"Which I seriously doubt it is," added Cottle bluntly, which again shocked Karl.

"You don't think..."

"From the state Captain Thrace was in when she was found I seriously doubt that making babies was foremost on the cylons agenda."

"Right," conceded Karl thinking that the good doctor had a point.

"So who's the father?"

Karl made a mental note to remember that Cottle was far more astute then he had ever given him credit for. No wonder he always knew when patients were lying about doing their required muscle exercises after an injury.

Karl knew that he had to come clean, "so, from what you were saying earlier, based on the size of the foetus, conception was likely to have been around the time she disappeared?"

"Yes, give or take about a week."

"So if Kara told me, on the day she disappeared, that she was frakking someone. That someone would likely be the father?"

Cottle frowned slightly, "that would be the likely scenario, unless she was having relations with someone else at the same time."

"No, no she wasn't, at least I don't think so."

"I need to know who this mystery man is Lieutenant, but I don't have all day. I assure you that anything you say will not leave this room."

"Apollo," said Karl weakly.

"Lords of Kobol," muttered Cottle as he took a long drag on his cigarette. "She never likes to do anything simply does she?"

Karl laughed briefly and nodded his head in agreement. After a few moments he became serious again, "you're not going to tell the old man are you?"

"I see no call for that at the moment and I have no desire to give the Commander another heart-attack. I will record on Thrace's records that the father is unknown for now."

Karl breathed a sigh of a relief and prayed silently that he had done the right thing. He then felt a pang of guilt course through him, this could potentially be the only chance the old man had for having a grandchild and it was going to be kept secret from him.

***************************************************************************

Baltar was true to his word and his test results were back within a few hours. He had requested Adama, Roslin and Cottle to attend his little laboratory on board the Galactica so he could tell them what he had found. As he was waiting for them to arrive Baltar took a few moments to scope his eyes around the room. There were test tubes everywhere containing blood specimens from the entire crew awaiting cylon testing. It was the most boring job he had ever undertaken and would probably take him the rest of his life to complete.

"Why so sad Gaius?" asked the ever present voice that haunted him day in and day out. "You're going to be part of a blessed event. God wants all his children to be fruitful and multiply."

"Since when did you care about a pregnant viper pilot?" asked Gaius knowing that ignoring the siren would not make her go away.

"Didn't you ever stop to realise that you could be the father?"

"Wh... what?"

"Or have you already forgotten about that night with _her_."

Any possibility that he could be the father had completely escaped from Baltar's mind. He was about to question the blond cylon further when a knock came at the hatch.

"Come in."

Adama, Roslin and Cottle entered the room and took up positions surrounding the large table in the middle. Baltar, however, was completely focused on the beautiful blond that was stalking across the room and walking up to the Commander. She leaned on his unaware shoulder and smiled.

"I hear you have some results doctor?" asked Adama huskily.

"Sorry?" asked Baltar looking from Adama's shoulder to his face. "Yes, yes I do."

"Care to share them anytime soon?" asked Cottle.

"Yes, I took a sample of the amniotic fluid from Lieutenant Thrace..."

"_Captain_ Thrace," added Adama sharply.

"Sorry, Captain Thrace. I took the fluid and tested it for the same indicators that I had found in Miss Valerii's. I found no cylon traces in the Captain's amniotic fluid. As far as I can tell the foetus is human."

"Thank you doctor," said Adama looking slightly relieved at this news.

Roslin turned to Cottle and smiled, "I want Captain Thrace kept on a ventilator until she brings the baby to term."

"You want me to override her directive?" asked Cottle frowning.

"I will not allow any measures that could affect the life of an unborn child."

Cottle nodded and then left the room briskly, cursing under his breath. Adama and Roslin thanked Baltar again and then also left the room shutting the hatch behind them. Baltar had ignored his guests leaving; his eyes completely focused on the woman who was now sat on the table directly in front of him.

"Aren't you disappointed that there's not going to be more little toasters running around?" he jibed.

The blond ignored Baltar's cutting words, "our child will still be born soon enough."

"Right, tell me how that is going to work again?"

"You need to have faith Gaius. The children of Kara Thrace and Sharon Valerii are important and must be protected."

Baltar ignored the woman and started to continue his endless job of blood tests. Sometimes the blond who had imprinted herself in his mind gave him a headache. As far as Baltar could ascertain Captain Thrace's baby was 100% human and there was nothing "special" about it.

The blond woman continued to sit on the table watching Baltar do his work, a conniving smile spread across her lips.

**********************************************************************

All Kara could see around her was the bright light and the sound of waves surrounding her still and prone body. The chaos that entrapped her mind was slowly loosening its grip and she was beginning to make sense of what was around her. Despite the peaceful calm that was starting to come, Kara had no idea where she was. All she knew was the unrelenting desire to find her way home, to stretch out her hand, to find Lee.

But she was stuck on this beach with sand seeping between her fingers completely at peace but at the same time trapped.

Kara knew that she would have to fight, use the rest of her strength to find her way home, to find him. As suddenly as she felt her strength build up, the need to battle for freedom escaped from her body. The contentment to continue lying down in the sun reclaimed her.

One day she would continue to fight, one day soon she would escape.

**AN: Again apologies that I'm not a doctor so my medical knowledge is shaky. For those of you who didn't notice, the plot of the book mentioned is adapted from one of my favourite classics – **_**Persuasion **_**by Jane Austen.**


	16. Dreaming of You

Chapter 15

"_Hey, what are you up to?" whispered Kara in his ear making the hairs on his neck stand up._

_Lee turned quickly to see her smiling down at him a look of mischief in her eyes. "The job of a CAG never ends," he said with a grin indicating the pile of folders in his lap._

"_And you just happen to be in the ready room at 2100 hours all by yourself?" mocked Kara resting her arms on his shoulders. Lee was sat in one of the chairs on the front row as she leaned over from the seat behind. They were completely alone with the lights dimmed down to conserve energy._

"_There's nowhere else quiet enough, the nuggets are having a triad night and Bear's snoring would drive me crazy in the bunk room."_

"_You need an office Adama," teased Kara as she gently massaged the tops of Lee's shoulders. She sure knew how to drive him crazy. For the last two nights they had a shared a rack together, curled in each other's arms. The massage was bringing back every soft memory of Kara's touch, her breath in his ear reminding him of when she was panting with ecstasy._

"_If I had an office I'd never leave," replied Lee attempting to clear his head, but his desire was keeping a firm hold._

_Kara was undeterred by Lee's feigned disinterest and nipped at his ear. The last of Lee's resolve disappeared as tingles flowed up and down his arms._

"_Gods Kara," he moaned. He could feel her smile against his face and knew she had ensnared him._

"_Fancy ditching the paperwork?" she cooed. _

_Lee didn't need asking twice before he had thrown the folders neatly to the floor. Kara then grabbed him underneath his arms dragging him over the back of the chair. Lee didn't put up any resistance as he thrust his legs over. _

_They both fell down together in-between the row of chairs with Lee on top. He looked down at Kara with her hair splayed out like a crown and a wide smile across her face, she was completely irresistible. Lee couldn't hold off any longer and lowered his lips to hers, devouring her completely. Kara grabbed the back of his head threading her fingers through his hair. _

_No matter how many times they had kissed like this Lee still wanted more, but unfortunately the bunk room was not empty tonight so they would have to make do with the ready room._

_Lee began to push up Kara's tanks with his hand, stopping as he reached her bra. His thumb traced over her nipple making her body convulse slightly._

"_Do you think we could get away with the ready room?" asked Kara breaking away from kissing._

"_I think here would be pushing it," answered Lee honestly. "Come on."_

_Before Kara could protest Lee had grabbed her hand and pulled her up off of the floor and led her out of the room. Once in the corridor they quickly stopped holding hands in case someone saw but Lee still led the way down the corridors. They were moving into an underused part of the Galactica, which was where the main stores were kept. As Lee had predicted, no-one was around so he grabbed Kara's hand again and slowly led her to the nearest store room._

_Kara smiled mischievously as Lee opened the hatch and turned the light on in the room. She leant in and began kissing him again, passionately pulling his jacket out of his trousers and drawing her hands up underneath. Kara's hands then went to the top of his slacks and slowly opened the buttons and lowered the zipper. Lee gasped as she reached her hand inside and gently cupped him._

_He nearly collapsed as Kara began to caress him gently along his jaw line with small kisses and then started kissing him down his neck and torso. Kara looked up at Lee when she half way down his still clothed chest and smiled. She then lowered herself further until she was on her knees._

_Lee felt time stop as Kara freed him from his slacks and took him into her mouth._

"_Oh my gods," was all he could groan as a million sensations rocked through his body. Of all the fantasies Lee had involving Kara, this scenario was one that he had been unable to fathom how good it was going to feel. He wanted to scream out in ecstasy that he loved her, but knew he had to show restraint. Lee gently placed his hand on the back of Kara's head as she worked her magic, lacing his fingers through her loose hair..._

"Oi! sleepyhead!"

Loud words pulled Lee out of his deep sleep. At first he thought that he and Kara had been caught in the store room. It took a few moments from him to realise that he was on the Pegasus and Kara had been taken away from him. Lee moaned and then rolled over, wincing as his weight put pressure on his sore shoulder. Even though it had been about four weeks since he was shot his shoulder was still giving him some pain and was likely to do so for many more weeks.

"What do you want?" groaned Lee, "I was having the first good night's sleep since I got here."

Showboat sat down on the edge of Lee's bunk. Two weeks ago he had finally been released from lifestation and given a berth in the senior officers bunk room. Not that he had slept much in his rack as nightmares racked through his brain every night causing him to wake up in a cold sweat. Tonight was the first time Lee had dreamt about a time before the cylons had ensnared him and Kara.

"I know," said Showboat. "It's also the first time you've slept through to 0800 hours."

"What? Frak." Lee rolled over onto his back. Today was his first day back on active duty. The ship's doctor had finally cleared him for flight, but in raptors only until his shoulder improved. For some reason last night Lee had been able to fall into a deep sleep without the nightmares, but now if he wasn't careful he would be late for his first shift.

Lee launched himself out of his rack and paced over to his locker. If he thought he had no possessions when the worlds ended, it was nothing compared to now. His locker was empty apart from one uniform, a pair of slacks and a flight suit with helmet. No-one had been generous with their luxury items but luckily Showboat had given him half a bar of soap.

The supply situation on the Pegasus was appalling making the Galactica seem like a luxury hotel. People were literally fighting each other over shampoo and toothpaste and there was no alcohol to speak of.

The hospitality also left a lot to be desired. Captain Taylor had already dubbed him as "daddy's boy" much to Lee chagrin. Cain had questioned him on numerous occasions about the fleet and the cylons, but she had integrated him into the crew. Fisk just nodded along with whatever Cain wanted, a note of fear always guiding him and the rest of the crew pretty much ignored him.

Showboat was Lee's only real ally as they had been to the academy together. They weren't really friends before but acquaintances. Lee hadn't really had time for friends back then, believing that he didn't need them, didn't need anybody to reach the top. It wasn't until he met Kara that he realised how truly lonely he was. Sure he had friends, but only a couple with whom he confided and socialised with. Kara had brought something else out of Lee; she had made him feel alive again.

Lee felt the pang of regret in his stomach when he thought of Kara. Every night he dreamt about her and every night he prayed that she was safe. Lee had never been a religious man before but it brought him comfort to turn to the Lords of Kobol to ask them to watch over her.

"I swear you never used to be this deep in thought at the academy," said Showboat laughing. "Come on your going to be late and believe me when I say that Taylor _will _make an example out of you if you are."

Lee grabbed his towel and jogged to the officer's head, which was full of the other pilots getting ready. Many of them looked at Lee as he walked up to the sink and splashed water over his face. The black rings under his eyes were a constant reminder of the nightmares that haunted him at night.

As he headed for the shower cubicle Narcho walked past shoving into his shoulder. Luckily it was his good shoulder so Lee decided to ignore him and carry on with his shower. The warm water cascaded around him but he only had three minutes due to rationing. Lee reached his arms up in an attempt to stretch out his body.

The memory flashed through him suddenly.

Lee jerked away swiftly from the spray and fell to the floor. Even though he was soaking wet Lee could feel the cold sweat starting to pour. After a moment he realised that everyone was looking at him sprawled naked on the floor so he jumped straight back up, hearing various people muttering and calling him crazy, but Lee was too focused on the memory.

"_Tell us where your fleet is hiding," asked the blond cylon in a gentle but terrifying voice. "You know what we'll do to her if you don't."_

Lee's thoughts were interrupted by his daily shower rations running out. He said a silent prayer again asking that Kara was safe and on board the Galactica.

In his heart, Lee believed she was alive, knowing that if she wasn't, part of him would have died already. The hope that he would see her again was the only thing keeping him going every day.

********************************************************************************

As Lee sat listening to Taylor give the morning briefing he felt himself hoping that he wasn't as long winded. Feeling the need to fall asleep Lee bit the inside of his mouth to keep himself alert.

"For all of you who haven't noticed already we have a new pilot with us today, Captain Lee Adama" said Taylor causing Lee to suddenly sit up straight as everyone turned to look at him. He smiled slightly as the many faces stared him down.

"Attention pilots," added Taylor sharply making everyone turn back around to the front of the room. "I'm sure everyone will help Apollo get re-accustomed to the workings of a modern Battlestar and acquaint him with how our crew runs. This is an efficient ship Captain and we expect you to keep up."

Lee bit the side of his mouth again suppressing a cutting remark, at the rate he was going he would pull a Starbuck and land himself in a lot of trouble. Lee felt his stomach flip as he thought about Kara and then an odd sense of pride at the notion that, if she was here, she would have already landed herself in trouble two weeks ago. Kara had never learnt to keep her mouth shut.

"Captain you will be flying as my ECO until the doc clears you for vipers."

Frakking ECO? This guy has got to be kidding thought Lee. He had spent four weeks sitting on his ass and now he had to face the indignity of being shoved back to ECO. He was a pilot and anything less than that was an insult.

"You do remember how to fly second in a raptor don't you Captain?"

"Ah, yes sir," answered Lee with the most sincere smile he could fathom.

"Attention on deck!" shouted out one of the pilots and everyone quickly jumped to their feet, their backs ramrod straight as Cain entered the room.

"At ease," she said in her strong voice. She walked up to the front of the room and addressed Taylor. "I trust that you have finished your morning briefing."

"Yes sir."

"And has Captain Adama been given his new assignment?"

"Yes sir, he will be flying as my ECO."

"I thought I told you to integrate him into your team Captain," said Cain sounding annoyed.

"Yes sir, there are no raptor positions open at the moment."

"Well don't you think it would be a far better use of resources to put Adama in the place of one of the junior pilots? After all, you're lucky he isn't taking your place as senior pilot."

"Yes sir," replied Taylor saluting. Lee noticed the slight blush filling his cheeks at being so publicly rebuked.

"Captain Adama I expect you to report to my office after your CAP, at 1800 hours."

"Yes Sir," replied Lee with a salute.

"Dismissed," said Cain and then left the room.

********************************************************************************

Lee was glad he was going to get the opportunity to fly the raptor but it had put him even further into Taylor's bad books. Everyone was giving him the cold shoulder, except Showboat who repeatedly told him to ignore them. Apparently they were always suspicious of any new members of their crew.

As Lee flew his raptor out of the landing pod, he missed the pull of the g-forces shoving him back into his chair. Raptors were really not exciting enough for him.

"Raptor four away," said Lee into his comm. system. "How's she looking?" he asked his ECO in the back.

"Looking good sir, nothing but clear skies," replied the ECO who was a young rooky pilot known as Ratchet.

"Let's take her for a spin then," said Lee turning around and smiling. The ECO smiled back and Lee took the raptor out on its CAP, which was a lot shorter than what he was used to.

It took about ten minutes into his CAP before Lee started to feel claustrophobic and felt a tightness overcome his body. At first he did not what the cause of the panic gripping him was, and then he remembered that it had been ten minutes into his flight with Kara when the cylons had taken them. Lee breathed deeply, trying to get himself under control.

"Apollo sir, are you okay?" asked Ratchet.

"I'm fine," said Lee sternly. He wouldn't let this beat him regardless of the cold sweat that caused his body to shiver. He would get through one CAP even if it killed him to do it. Lee tried to think of nicer memories, he closed his eyes briefly trying to focus his mind on the dream he had been having that morning. He then thought better of that idea as he felt his flightsuit getting tighter. So he focused his brain again, this time he recalled the ten minutes he and Kara had together before the cylons came. How she had agreed to go on a date with him on the Rising Star. In order to keep himself going Lee imagined what the date would have been like, where they would have gone, dancing together and then finally spending the night together. He imagined what she would be wearing and the smile she would hold during dinner.

His thoughts were enough to keep Lee going on his three hour CAP around the Pegasus.

******************************************************************************

Cain stood at her desk looking at a computer screen, which showed Kara's Colonial Fleet photograph and fleet records. She was deep in thought as she read through the files.

"Who's that?" asked Fisk.

"Lieutenant Thrace, the woman Captain Adama mentioned."

"Anything interesting?"

"Her history is certainly colourful," replied Cain. "She's had three censures on her record and was thrown in the brig twice when she was a cadet, both times for drunk and disorderly offences. Her demerits, which weren't walked off, stopped her from grabbing a spot in the top five of her class. She even fell out with the Commander of the Triton."

"And she is still an officer?" asked Fisk incredulously.

"Despite her problems on the Triton she was offered a prestigious position in Delphi, as a flight instructor."

"Thought those positions only went to senior officers."

"They are, which is why I think there's a lot more to this Lieutenant than being a discipline case. She has a number of commendations for her prowess as a viper pilot and excellence as an instructor. Look at her academy flight scores."

Fisk whistled as Cain scrolled through Kara's academy records, "frak she broke nearly every SIM record. That's the highest score I have ever seen."

"Her instructors quote her as the most natural pilot to go through the academy. Unfortunately by the sound of it her ego doesn't quite match her flying skills."

Before Fisk could answer, Cain had switched off the screen to the computer as a knock came at her hatch door. It was 1800 hours and Lee had arrived as requested.

The marines opened the hatch allowing Lee to enter. After his CAP he had needed a long shower to wash away the sweat that had soaked him for the entire three hours. All Lee wanted to do was hide in his rack until his next shift, like he had been doing every day since leaving lifestation.

"Thank you for coming Captain."

Lee nodded and then stood by Cain's desk, the lack of chairs in the room always unnerved him but at least it meant that her meetings never lasted for too long.

"How was your first CAP?" asked Cain.

"Fine sir, no sign of any toasters."

"Good. As soon as you are fit for duty you'll be back to vipers."

"Thank you sir," said Lee thinking that it couldn't happen soon enough.

"I want you working with Taylor to draw up a plan to return to Caprica as soon as possible."

"On our own? Do you think that we could take on that many baseships sir?"

"Do you think that my crew is not capable Captain?" said Cain, her voice sending a warning.

"Of course not sir."

"Then get planning, I want a preliminary plan by the end of the week."

"Yes sir," replied Lee with conviction.

"Then you're dismissed," said Cain. As Lee turned to leave she added, "oh and Captain I don't plan to keep Taylor as CAG for much longer. I need a leader who's not wet behind the ears and takes action. I hope you can be that person."

"Yes sir," said Lee saluting and then exited the room.

He breathed a sigh of relief as the hatch closed behind him. Every time he met with Cain he got nervous. He had heard rumours of what she was capable of and getting a bullet fired in his head was not on the top of his to do list.

It was too early for Lee to hide in his rack unfortunately, as much as he wished he could. He needed to build up his strength again, which meant making sure he didn't skip any more meals. His weight had plummeted during his captivity, which was hardly surprising as the cylons would starve him for days at a time.

He entered the officer's mess ignoring the usual stares that were thrown in his direction. Unfortunately Showboat was on CAP so he would have to sit by himself. The solitude never bothered him before on the Galactica, as he was usually knee deep in paperwork, but he had nothing to do now. Part of him hoped that Cain would make him CAG, even though it would make him even more unpopular, at least it would be something to do.

The food was minimal as usual and barely enough to fill him up. The voices resounding around the room was raucous as people sat in groups. Lee couldn't help what he was overhearing.

"Hey Joker are you going down to see the action later?" shouted out one of the pilots.

"And miss Thorne's interrogation? Never, I'll be there."

Lee was confused, who was Thorne interrogating? He leaned backwards to the table behind him where Ratchet was sitting, "hey Ratchet."

"Hi sir," said Ratchet as he stopped eating.

"Call me Apollo. What are Joker and Reaper talking about?"

"Oh, the cylon prisoner down in the brig. A lot of people go down and watch the interrogation," replied Ratchet sounding annoyed.

"What do you mean?" asked Lee but he had a horrible idea what he meant.

"Thorne has his own unique way of getting information, not that she says anything."

"Right," said Lee. He then stood up quickly and marched out of the room, refusing even to overhear the pilots bragging about what they had done to the toaster. It was abhorrent to Lee and to over half of the others in the room, but Lee was the only one to walk away.

Lee decided that spending the entire evening and night in his rack sounded like a good idea.

**********************************************************************************

_Lee cursed as he smacked his toe on the table that stretched down the middle of the room. The senior officer's quarters were dark as everyone was asleep. Lee had been up late finishing off some work in the ready room and Kara had been on a late CAP, so she would only have just made it back to her rack, which hopefully meant she was still awake._

_Lee knew he had to be careful in case someone had woken up when he had hit the table with a thud. So he waited a few moments, sitting on the edge of his rack. When he didn't hear anyone stirring he closed the curtain to his rack and walked over to Kara's. He silently pulled back her curtain slightly and peered inside; she was asleep and looked so beautiful with her mouth slightly parted. At first Lee didn't want to disturb her, but his desire was taking hold._

_He brushed a hair out of her face and stroked her cheek. She woke up immediately with a soft smile spreading across her face. She looked to be about to speak so Lee placed a finger to her lips and then kissed her softly, moving his body further into her rack. They began kissing as gently and quietly as they could with Lee on top lying in-between Kara's legs._

_Lee then began to stroke his hands down her body as she arched her back up towards him. He slowly knelt up and began to slide her briefs down her legs, watching the look of want on her face. Once the briefs were removed he gently placed them to the side and leant down to her stomach, gently kissing his way around her abdomen making her gasp quietly. His tongue encircled her belly-button, which he knew had hit one of her sensitive spots because her hand flew to his head to keep him there. But Lee didn't want to stop there so he kissed his way up further, pushing her tanks up as he went until she had to lift up her head and he pulled them off completely. _

_Their lips met slowly again, their eyes locking with each other as Lee slid down his underwear slightly and entered her slowly. It wasn't the first time they had done this, but it felt like the first time they were making love, taking it slowly. Lee began a slow pace as Kara lifted her legs slightly for the perfect angle. It took all his effort for Lee not to shout out or groan in pleasure, it felt so perfect. Kara was obviously enjoying it too, scratching her hands down his back and kissing at his neck._

_Suddenly everything started to blur and he wasn't feeling pleasure anymore. A long corridor went on for eternity in front of him and then he was suddenly back in that room, pinned to that chair with the blond cylon cooing in his ear._

"_Tell us where your fleet is hiding; you know what we'll do to her if you don't."_

_Lee was resolutely silent; he would not let her beat him, not again. He wouldn't give them anything more, knowing that it was all a trick._

"_Have it your way," she added giving him a kiss on the cheek and looking over towards the cage where Kara was being held, chained up by her hands with her feet barely touching the floor._

_Lee closed his eyes trying to block out the images of what they did her when he disobeyed. The sounds, however, he couldn't drown out as she cried out in pain..._

Lee woke up suddenly and sat up smacking his head on the top of the bunk, sweat soaking his body. All the lights were out in the room and one person shouted out for him to keep the noise down. Evidently people had only just gone to bed. Lee's heart was racing and he clutched his hand to his chest.

He had to get out of the room. Leaping out of his rack he grabbed his shoes and ran to the head reaching the toilet just in time before he started being sick. Lee vomited until there was nothing else to bring up, but even then he kept dry retching.

It took Lee about twenty minutes before he could stand up and walk over to the sinks where he splashed water on his face. Looking at his reflection in the mirror he almost didn't recognise himself, he had dark lines under his eyes and his cheeks looked sunken.

He wanted the old Lee back, he wanted his ship back and most of all he wanted Kara back.

"Are you okay Apollo?" asked Narcho coming out of one of the stalls and making Lee jump.

"Yeah," Lee replied without conviction. "What are you doing here so late?"

"Same thing as you by the sounds of it, can't keep that grim food down most days."

Lee nodded and then looked back at the mirror trying to find any sign that the old him was in there somewhere.

Narcho neared the sinks looking contrite, "when are you going to be back to vipers?"

"At the rate I'm going, never."

"If you want any help training..."

"Thanks," said Lee cutting him off. He knew Narcho was trying for the first time to be nice to him but at the moment he really didn't care.

Narcho lingered momentarily before walking away. Lee ignored him and headed for the showers to wash away the sweat covering his body. He had to pull himself together or he really would never get back into a viper.

After his shower Lee walked slowly back to his rack so he could lay down. The ship was eerily silent, even at night the Galactica still held an ominous hum from the engines, but it was always a nice reminder that she was still alive. Everything about the Pegasus was too new and shiny, reminding him of the Atlantia, which was a time of his life that he wanted to forget. He had been stationed there just after War College and his promotion to Captain, just after Zak had died. Lee had taken with him all of his anger and resentment. He barely talked to any of the crew and fell out with the CAG, hindering his progress up the ranks.

It was also when Lee had started up his disastrous on-off relationship with Gianne. He had met her in a bar the night before he left for the Atlantia. A week before he had said goodbye to Kara as she left for the Galactica and he was still raw from their parting. Lee was hurt that she had gone to be with _him, _but not angry. Their parting had been difficult and Lee had spent the entire week attempting to forget about it. Then Gianne had entered the room with her smile and blond hair and a drunk Lee was drawn to her like a moth to a flame. They had spent the night together and then met up every night he had on shore-leave. To Lee it was nothing serious, she was nice, but she wasn't what he wanted. She had no spirit and that's what had attracted him so much to Kara. When Gianne had told him she was pregnant, Lee knew he had made a huge mistake and he had been a coward and run away.

It was a regret he still carried with him today, he could have been a father. His unborn child had died with the rest of Caprica, but Lee couldn't help wondering what it would have been like to hold him or her in his arms.

Since the end of the worlds Lee had come to realise what an idiot he had been during the two years after Zak's death. He reached his bunk with the memories flooding his brain and he knew he would never get to sleep. Only half of him actually wanted to sleep in the hope of seeing Kara in his dreams; the other half of him feared the nightmares that constantly haunted him.


	17. A Glimpse of the Future Part Three

**AN: Thank you so much for those of you who have reviewed my story, they always bring make me smile. Unfortunately this will be my last chapter for a little while, but for good reasons. I am getting married on Sunday to my sweetheart of 7 years (who Ford is loosely based upon.) I will then be enjoying the African island of Zanzibar for 2 weeks. But I promise that I will update as soon as I can when I get home!!**

Chapter 16

Today was finally the day when they were going to get the opportunity to meet and greet their guests. They were going to find out where they were from and more importantly what they were doing on Earth. Everyone was nervous as they prepared the two rooms that would hold Blue Eyes and Blondie. The language translation computers had been built into each room with a table in the middle holding seats for two people.

In each of the rooms one-way glass covered one of the walls. On the other side of the glass was a large room where the interviews would be observed, containing cameras, which were also going to record for later scrutiny.

Caroline stood inside the large room, where she would view Blondie's interrogation. Ford had asked her to keep an eye on Simms, which she intended to do. The scientists had split into two groups, half watching Blue Eyes the rest watching Blondie. Caroline couldn't believe how nervous she was, her stomach was doing somersaults and she had barely slept the night before. Random dreams had invaded her mind. Each time it was different, sometimes Blondie answered questions and sometimes she did not. In one dream she had just keeled over sending Simms into a screaming panic.

The door to the interview room opened drawing Caroline's attention as Simms entered. He was dressed in his full uniform and side arm. An air of arrogance surrounded him like an aura. Caroline prayed silently to herself that Simms would not be his usual irritating self and ruin this momentous moment for her. He was scoping out the room and taking deep breaths. Simms then rearranged the chairs so that one was at the far end of the table and the other at the side. Caroline guessed he was trying to find the most intimidating layout in which to question the poor woman. She couldn't believe that Simms was going to be one of the interviewers and sensed that trouble was coming.

Caroline watched as Simms took one more appreciating look around the room and then left. Blondie would be brought in alone at first to settle down and then Simms would follow.

The plan for today was to discover Blondie and Blue Eye's real names and the names of all the others and hopefully establish where they had come from. They had no idea if they would get any answers at all. Brunette had shown that she was not really willing to talk and it was feared that Blondie and Blue Eyes would be the same. Their guests had been getting restless again but they had allowed Legs back into his room. Fortunately he had not kicked off again.

Caroline looked at the clock and saw that it was 12.00, it was time to begin. She took a deep breath and exited the room wanting to see Blondie and Blue Eyes being taken from their rooms. The butterflies in stomach kept fluttering as she stood outside Blue Eyes' room; he was going to be taken out first. Two marines knocked and then opened his door. Caroline saw them smile slightly and then gesture towards the corridor. Blue Eyes obeyed straight away and stood out in the corridor, looking around as he went. Caroline saw that he glanced quickly at the other doors leading off from the corridor, imagining that he was thinking his comrades were behind them.

Blue Eyes, like the other guests, was dressed completely in white consisting of trousers and a jumper. There was also a white vest top to be worn underneath and for the ladies a white cropped top. They were not allowed to wear shoes so they had been given woolly socks instead. Caroline admired him as he was led gently down the corridor in handcuffs; she had never seen a man as well built as he was. Perfectly balanced with muscles you just wanted to reach out and grab. As Blue Eye's was led past he looked in her direction for a moment, making her heart flutter. His bright blue eyes boring through to her soul and she suddenly felt a pang of jealously towards Blondie.

As soon as he had appeared, he had disappeared around a corner with the marines. He would be led to the interview room and sat down at one of the tables to wait for Ford. Part of Caroline wished she could watch that meeting, but she was here to study not to drool and besides she had promised to keep an eye on Simms. Two more marines walked down the corridor drawing back her attention as they approached Blondie's room. Again Caroline found herself feeling nervous as they knocked and opened the door gesturing to the woman inside to exit. After a few moments the woman walked out with a decidedly annoyed look on her face, she had been asleep. Blondie held out her hands in the expectation of being cuffed but the marine waved her off and motioned for her to walk down the corridor. Caroline saw the woman raise her eyebrow slightly, with a small hint of a smile as she obeyed the marine's wordless order.

Like Blue Eyes, Blondie glanced at Caroline as she walked by, like she was scoping everything out, making a mental log of people and places.

Caroline followed Blondie and the marines down the corridor and to the interview room. The marine opened the door and gestured for her to enter, which she did without hesitation. Caroline went inside the viewing room so she could see Blondie adjust to her new environment. The marines closed and locked the door leaving her standing just inside.

Caroline watched intently as Blondie took a deep breath and then looked around the room unimpressed. She looked frustrated as she slowly started to pace the room. She then lightly tapped the wall with her foot followed by some piping running down one of the walls. Blondie then kicked out the chair at the head of the table so it was at an angle and sat down, curiously ignoring the computer in the corner and putting her feet up on the table. Caroline saw that she was scanning her eyes around the room focusing lastly on the glass wall, which was slightly behind her.

It was as if Blondie was looking straight at her and then she winked, making Caroline even more nervous.

The door to the room opened making Blondie spin her head back around to the front as Simms entered. Caroline saw Blondie swallow and then square her shoulders in defiance. Simms slammed a folder down on the table and then walked silently to the other side of the room. He paused for dramatic effect over by the computer. Blondie kept staring straight ahead as Simms walked behind her, her face revealing nothing.

Suddenly Simms spoke loudly and sternly, "put your feet down."

Blondie looked puzzled until moments later the computer translated on loud speaker what he had said. She looked surprised and squared her shoulders again, but acquiesced throwing her feet off the table. Her chair was still at an angle.

Simms crossed his arms over his chest looking annoyed. "Straighten up your chair and face the wall," he said as harshly as he had done before. Again Blondie did as she was told as soon as the translation was complete, but there was something in the way that she held herself, which told Caroline that she was not happy with Simms. Caroline was annoyed with Simms as well, knowing that shouting at the woman was not the way to get answers.

Simms walked silently to the table and sat down in the second chair. He flipped through the pages of his folder briefly before facing the woman.

"What is your name?" he asked in an almost bored voice.

Blondie did not respond keeping her eyes looking straight ahead.

"I don't like asking twice, what is your name?"

Again she did not respond, instead she folded her arms in front of her. Caroline could tell that Blondie was getting more and more annoyed, her throat twisting slightly.

"Fine," said Simms firmly. "Then I'll call you by what the scientists nicknamed you. Is that okay with you _Blondie? _Or don't you like that name, _Blondie_."

Blondie shifted in her seat slightly with each harsh use of her epithet, her jaw contracted making Caroline fear that this interview was going to very quickly degenerate.

Simms however, seemed undeterred, "Why are you here?"

"We crashed here," replied Blondie in a tone that obviously pissed off Simms.

He leaned in towards Blondie in an attempt to intimidate her, "listen here little girl, we don't have time for your games. Now tell me, why are you here?"

Blondie did not react but her eyes flickered slightly and she fidgeted her feet.

"Are you listening to me _Blondie!?!_" shouted Simms right in her face in another vain attempt at intimidation, which fell totally flat as Blondie suddenly shot up her arm, grabbed the back of his head and slammed his face into the table. Simms was so shocked that he only had time to raise his head slightly before Blondie followed up with a sharp kick to his chair, knocking out the legs and causing his head to fly back down onto the table. To finish him off Blondie grabbed the back of his jacket, pulling him backwards from the table and dumping him on the floor.

For Caroline everything seemed to happen in slow motion as she watched in horror as Blondie smashed Simms' head into the table and then threw him to the floor. Marines ran from the observation room in order to suppress the woman but Blondie was way ahead. She kicked the table across the room jamming it between the door and the piping. The marines attempting to storm the room were hampered by the door that could open a few centimetres.

The alarms started blaring throughout the building.

Blondie took a step back as the marines started to shout various commands through the door, which the computer was having difficulty keeping up with. She then suddenly turned as Simms let out a groan, blood pouring down his face.

"You broke my nose you bitch," muffled Simms holding his hands to his face.

Blondie squared her shoulders again and stood before him, anger radiating from her face as she leant down towards him and then swung out her leg, her foot connecting with his jaw. Simms went down like a tonne of bricks to the floor, falling instantly unconscious.

Blondie leaned in towards him again twisting her mouth in disgust and said sternly, "don't call me Blondie." Her words echoed around the room as it was translated by the computer.

The marines were still attempting to enter causing Blondie to spring into action. She kicked over Simms onto his back and grabbed his sidearm out of its holster. After looking at it for a few moments she worked out how to disengage the safety and chambered a bullet.

The marines were still busy outside the room trying to find a way in, trying to reason with the woman. But she was resolute in her escape and aimed the gun at the glass partition. At first Caroline wasn't worried, surely the glass was bullet proof, but after Blondie fired six rounds in a circle she began to think that maybe she might know what she was doing. As a gas cylinder was thrown into the room Blondie grabbed a chair and threw it at the glass with all her might.

Caroline ducked down in fear of being hit as she heard the sound of glass smashing. _Where were the marines?_

They were still outside the room trying to get in, thinking that Blondie could not possibly get through the glass. Everything was happening so quickly that Caroline had no time to remember that she was now in the room alone with an escaped prisoner. The gas was also collecting in the room causing her to cough. Caroline knew she had to act and fast, she stood back upright and began to dash towards the door.

She didn't get very far.

A firm arm suddenly wrapped itself around her neck and Caroline felt herself being thrust backwards against the body of the woman. She heard stern words in her ear, which did not seem to be threatening but more of a warning, and then she was shoved towards the door. The woman's arm was still around her neck and she felt a gun against her temple. Caroline wished that she had a translator machine on her so she could reason with Blondie and understand what she was saying.

Suddenly the marines came through the door aiming their guns towards her and Blondie. When they saw the gun against her head they backed away slightly.

"Whoa, put down the gun, we don't want anybody to get hurt," said the leading marine.

Caroline rolled her eyes, "she can't understand, you fuckwit."

The marine blushed slightly and then made actions with his gun for Blondie to lower her gun. But the woman was determined and carried on heading towards the door making the marines back away. She shouted out a few unintelligible stern demands, which did have the effect of making the marines back away further.

Caroline was shoved through the door ungracefully. She had no doubt that Blondie had been given military training. Her prowess and confidence as she started to guide Caroline backwards down the corridor left no uncertainty in her mind. Blondie was using her for cover by putting Caroline between her, and the wall behind. She edged away from the marines who had now lowered their guns.

Caroline silently cursed Simms for taking a gun with him into the interview. Blondie had three bullets left and Caroline sensed that she wouldn't hesitate to shoot her if necessary. Even though she knew that Blondie could not understand her, Caroline attempted to try and defuse the situation.

"There's no need to do this," she said in a soothing voice. "There's no way you'll get out of here and I don't want anybody to get hurt."

Blondie said something sharply, which Caroline would bet twenty quid was along the lines of "shut up."

Caroline felt the woman's grip tightening around her neck and was shocked at her strength; she felt a sudden sympathy for Simms' nose and jaw.

"Please," said Caroline, this time in more of a pleading type of voice. Again Blondie did not listen

It seemed like an eternity before Blondie stopped in her tracks. The marines were further away now and she had obviously sensed that now was the time to make an escape. The gun left the side of her face and Caroline saw out of the corner of her eye Blondie raise it again suddenly. The shots firing sent shockwaves down her body and the marines all threw themselves to the deck. But Blondie wasn't aiming for them, with her last three shots she blew out the lights ahead of her sending the corridor into darkness. Caroline felt a sharp push to her back, which sent her flying to the deck and then everything went silent. The only sound she had heard as she fell was the quiet sound of footsteps running away.

Torches shone her direction, "are you okay doc?" asked one marine.

"I'm fine, we need to find her."

"Caroline?" shouted a voice down the corridor, which she instantly recognised to be Ford.

Caroline picked herself up off the floor and headed for the sound of Ford. The room was suddenly illuminated by large portable lights. Finally she could see Ford standing at the end of the corridor and looked to be giving various marines orders of action.

"Have all levels sealed off immediately," he said.

"Already done sir, there's no way she'll get out of building."

"I want minimal force used," demanded Caroline. "There are no more bullets left in her gun and I don't want her hurt,"

"Get going," ordered Ford.

"Yes sir," saluted the marine and turned to address the other men. "We'll search the building level by level, split into groups of four."

The marines then scattered into groups and headed down the corridor quickly.

"Caroline are you sure you're okay?" asked Ford.

"I'm fine; I don't think she wanted to hurt me."

The alarms were still blaring throughout the building but at least it was no longer dark. Ford pulled Caroline away down another corridor where the overhead lights were still working and examined her neck. There was slight redness but no bruises yet. Caroline noticed the group of marines standing to one side guarding Blue Eyes who was in handcuffs. He didn't look confused or worried like expected; instead his expression showed that he expected this to happen.

"Bring him into the interview room," ordered Ford.

Blue Eyes didn't struggle or complain as he was led back into his interview room and sat down in the chair.

"Where has she gone?" asked Ford waiting for the computer to translate.

"Who?" replied Blue Eyes leaning back in his chair in defiance as the computer translated his words back.

"Don't give me that, you know who, the blonde."

Blue Eyes shifted in his seat slightly, "it's your base you should know."

"I want to find her sooner rather than later. I don't want to have to hurt her."

Blue Eyes frowned and then looked concerned, sitting in silence.

"If she doesn't come quietly she might get shot and I don't want that to happen," insisted Ford.

Caroline saw Blue Eyes swallow and shift in his chair again.

"No I wouldn't want that to happen," he replied.

"Then where would she go?"

"I really don't know," replied Blue Eyes. "I gave up trying to predict my wife years ago."

So they _were_ married thought Caroline, she gestured to Ford to exit the room. Ford acquiesced and followed her closing the door behind him.

"What is it?" he asked.

"This is getting us nowhere; they're married, if he knew where she would go he would tell us."

Ford nodded, "think of something. I'm going to help with the search."

Caroline watched as Ford walked away loading a clip into his sidearm and placing it back into its holster. She had to think of plan and fast.

*********************************************************************************

Ford was annoyed and wanted to take his rage out on Simms, how stupid had he been? Everyone at the base had been given the highest and most intense training possible and one woman had managed to make them all look like amateur idiots. He was really going to have it out with Simms and make sure the liability was transferred. But for now all Ford cared about was getting Blondie safely back to her room without causing injury to her or anyone else.

She hadn't been loose long, only about ten minutes, but that was already too long. Ford had listened to radio calls coming in saying that there was no sign of her yet. Where had she gone?

It was clear that Blondie was military like himself, so where would he go? She must know that there would be no chance of getting to any of her comrades, knowing that they would be under heavy guard. All she could do by herself would be to attempt to contact her people, but she would have no idea where her ship was being stored. Ford concluded that Blondie must be trying to find the most obvious way out of a compound; either that or she was just being irritating and pushing to see the abilities of her captors.

A light bulb flashed in Ford's head.

She was testing them, seeing how intelligent and resourceful they were with the added bonus of getting the opportunity to face plant Simms' head into a table. Blondie knew there was no way of escaping and Ford had a feeling she wouldn't abandon her husband either.

Ford made his way down to the lower levels of the base, where the marines may not have thought to look yet. It was also where they had the least CCTV cameras, which may attract a runaway. So far Blondie had not been picked up on a single camera.

As Ford came to the bottom of an empty stairwell and entered a lab he got a call on his personal radio.

"Ford here," he said strongly. "Have you found her yet?"

"Negative sir, we found Parker unconscious on level two near the elevator but he should be okay."

"Shit," muttered Ford to himself, he was currently on level one. "Keep looking, minimal force only."

"Yes sir," replied the marine and then the radio went dead.

Ford had entered a seldom used part of the building down a back stairwell thinking that if he wanted to hide, this is where he would go. In fact it was his favourite hidey-hole for when he wanted to get away from people. This area was used as a back-up lab for when they had too much work in the normal labs. It had been full of scientists when their guests had first arrived; Legs and Mr Robot had been brought down here for tests.

Ford's ears perked up, he could have sworn he heard a faint noise coming from the other side of the lab. It was probably one of the refrigerators humming, but Ford suddenly had the strangest feeling that he was being watched. He took his gun, not disengaging the safety as it was mainly for show, and began to walk across the room with caution. His heart was racing slightly from the adrenaline pumping through his body.

Ford walked past some examination tables and filing cabinets until he came to a glass partition that split the lab in two. He walked into the second lab, which looked very much like the first but in here were a number of refrigeration units that were gently humming to themselves. Ford cursed and scolded himself for being so jumpy.

At the end of the second lab was another stairwell that led down to the ground floor, where the security was so watertight that Blondie would have no chance of escaping. As Ford neared the stairs his radio came to life again.

"Ford," he said putting the radio up towards his head.

"Sir," said the same voice as before. "Parker just woke up, thinks the woman went down the ventilation shaft, which leads to level one, have you..."

The marines' message was cut off by the sudden and sharp kick that connected with the underside of Ford's arm. The radio went flying and then in an instant Ford barely had time to blink before he saw the elbow flying into his face, colliding with his cheek bone. Ford went down hard with the shock of the blow, his back hitting the deck. His instinct kicked in and Ford immediately swept out his leg in the hope of connecting with something. It was all a blur of motion as his leg connected with something white, which in turn crashed to the floor. At first Ford wasn't sure what he had hit and then he definitely knew it was a person as he saw the flash of white slacks kicking him in the face.

Ford ignored the pain and reached out his arm with speed grabbing the foot of the offending leg. Instantaneously the other leg began kicking out at him, which he blocked with his free arm. When Ford finally had a free second to look at his attacker, through the constant thrashing, he was not surprised to see Blondie struggling to stand.

Ford made the mistake of stopping in order to try and calm the woman down. Blondie seized this opportunity and brought her arm squarely into a strong punch to his jaw, using the second when Ford was knocked back to get back up to standing and begin to dash towards the first lab. This was where Blondie made a mistake in underestimating Ford who leapt to his feet and caught up with her seconds sending her flying into an examination table with Ford at her back.

She struggled violently as Ford tried to pin her, shouting out what he imagined to be various obscenities. Blondie was definitely stronger than he had ever imagined she could be and inventive. Ford had just pinned her arms when her head flew back and connected with his nose making him see stars. Again she used the opportunity to wriggle free and throw out another punch to his face, which he easily blocked.

The next few seconds were a blur as Blondie threw out a number of punches as Ford desperately tried to block them, failing on a number of occasions. She had managed to force him backwards into the refrigeration units when she kicked him sharply in the shin and threw out her arm towards his neck. Ford violently blocked the blow and used the moment, when she had been knocked back slightly, to throw out his own punch, which connected straight to the side of her eye-socket.

Blondie went flying backwards collapsing on top of a glass table, which shattered. Ford felt the guilt grip him immediately, he hadn't meant to hit her so hard, and he didn't hit women. Blondie looked dazed on the floor, blood trickling down slightly from a cut just under her eye.

Shit thought Ford; he grabbed his radio to call for help, again grossly underestimating the strength this woman beheld. She suddenly rocketed herself upwards smacking her shoulder into his side like a rugby tackle. Ford couldn't stop the momentum as they both went hurtling into the glass partition and then straight through it, smashing glass everywhere. Ford fell to the floor on his back, the weight of Blondie pushing him down as she fell on top of him.

"Kara."

The voice over the loudspeakers made them both stop in their tracks momentarily.

"Kara," said the voice again more firmly this time.

This time Ford sprung into action as Blondie was frozen in place a look relief washing over her and there were slight tears pooled in her eyes. Taking his chance Ford pushed her off of his chest so that she was on her front and the held her arms behind her back. Suddenly all the fight was gone from her, but not in defeat. That voice had completely calmed her resolve and it was like she no longer wanted to fight.

Ford guessed and vaguely recognised that the voice belonged to Blue Eyes.

Marines came running into the lab with their guns raised, stopping when they saw Ford pinning Blondie to the floor, which was completely covered in glass from the now missing room divider.

"Are you okay sir?" asked one of the marines at the front noticing that Ford had a slight nose bleed, a nasty cut on his hand and bruising forming on his cheek bone and jaw.

"Yeah, where were you guys two minutes ago when she was kicking my arse?" asked Ford gesturing to Blondie.

"We came running as soon as your radio cut off sir, but we were on level three."

Ford nodded and then looked down at Blondie. She wasn't struggling but lying resolutely still, with her head turned slightly to one side. Ford felt a pang of guilt at her already swollen eye.

"We need to get her to Caroline," he said loosening his grip slightly and then asked in the hope that it was her real name, "Kara?"

Blondie raised her head slightly telling Ford that it was indeed her name. Ford carefully rolled her over on to her back so that her arms were in front of her and then firmly secured a pair of handcuffs. Throughout this manoeuvre Blondie was completely compliant holding out her hands, her face expressionless.

Ford looked around him at the glass covering the floor, which had already caused a number of small cuts to his body, and then looked at Blondie's feet, she was only in socks. He pulled her arms and body upwards over his shoulder and then suddenly lifted her up off the floor, despite her obviously vocal objections.

"You're the one that broke the glass," said Ford dryly, regardless of whether she could understand him.

The marines moved out of the way in amusement at the sight of Ford shoulder carrying the woman that had caused so much trouble, her face showing how unimpressed she was.

*******************************************************************************

Caroline would never forget the image of Ford as he reached the top of the stairwell with Blondie flung over his shoulder, her butt sticking ungracefully in the air. He led her to medical and placed her gently on a gurney. Caroline was not impressed by the swollen eye and cut that marred Blondie's face.

Ford sat on a gurney opposite, also looking worse for wear and contrite. Caroline turned her back to him not wanting to see him as she treated Blondie's injuries. After she cleaned up the cut she handed Blondie an ice-pack to help with the swelling, which Blondie held to her face with her cuffed hands. After she had finished cleaning her up Caroline walked over to Ford.

"I didn't mean to hit her so hard," said Ford ashamed.

"I know. You were in one of the only areas covered by a camera, you had no choice. I asked Blue Eyes to reach out to her over the loudspeakers. Guess we know her name now, it sounds so _human_, Kara."

"Sounds far too sweet for a woman with such a mean right hook," replied Ford, trying to realign his jaw.

"I promised Blue Eyes that he could see her."

Ford was about to object but just then the door to medical opened and Blue Eyes was brought in, handcuffed and surrounded by a number of marines. He walked immediately over to Blondie ignoring everyone else, a look of "I told you so," on his face. He then smiled as Blondie looked up at him, her eyes pooling slightly. Blue Eyes stroked a finger down her cheek and then pressed a kiss to her brow making her smile widely.

Ford slid off his gurney and walked towards them, a translator computer had been set up in the room and he wanted to apologise about what had happened.

As Ford walked up Caroline saw Blue Eyes removing the ice-pack from Blondie's eye, his jaw tensing.

Ford had chosen the wrong time to clear the air, as soon as he started to speak Blue Eyes' elbow came flying up hitting him square in the jaw. The marines jumped forward but Caroline motioned for them to back away, fearing someone would get shot.

Blondie leapt up from the gurney and shouted, "Lee!" and then grabbed at him the best she could in handcuffs. Blue Eyes stumbled, falling back into her and they fell to the floor together.

Caroline had grabbed Ford pulling him away behind the gurney.

Then it all went quiet, the two couples were silent in contemplation of each other.

After a few moments Caroline watched as Blue Eyes turned towards Blondie and then they embraced, taking each other into their cuffed arms, by hooking their arms over each other's heads. Caroline felt a pang of sadness wash over her, remembering how lonely she was, how she would love to have someone to hold.

The couple were oblivious to everyone around them and continued to hold each other on the floor before kissing gently on the lips. Blondie then rested her head on Blue Eyes' shoulder. She said a few words into his neck, which Blue Eyes responded in kind.

The computer translated the words.

"I missed you."

"I missed you too."


	18. Perspectives

Chapter 17

She could still feel the sand under her fingers with the gentle sound of the sea waves beside her. The chaos had gone, replaced by the blissful sound of birds fluttering overhead. Kara had managed to open her eyes now and could see the beautiful shore line; she had been here before, the Caprican seaside where she had spent a holiday with Zak and Lee many years ago.

Despite the peace that Kara felt resonating throughout her body she still felt trapped, like she couldn't move. The strength that she had was waning and she could feel herself fading away into the sea. Kara knew that if the waves engulfed her, she would never find her way home again, that she would begin the journey to the other side.

There had been time, whilst she lay there, that Kara could feel a hand reaching out to her, trying to help her back. The voice was there now but it seemed so far away. Suddenly she heard other voices calling to her, but they seemed to be coming from over the ocean and they were louder, clearer. Kara recognised her mother's voice straight away as it broke through the rest, telling her that she had to be strong, that she had to fight, to keep going.

Kara muscled up all of her strength, Socrata was right she couldn't give up now, not after everything. She also wouldn't give her mother the satisfaction of failing like she had done so many times before. She would make Socrata proud to be her mother. The voice that had seemed so far away came closer and for a second Kara could smell the faint odour of cigarettes burn her nostrils and hear the low beeping sound of machinery.

But then the fear suddenly gripped Kara, what if she was still with the cylons? That horror was enough to bring Kara back to the beach and to safety, her mother's voice now bringing comfort.

*******************************************************************************

_Battlestar Galactica – Lifestation_

Karl took up his normal daily vigil at Kara's side. He was still reading to her the romance novel, even though it had been four weeks since he had started it. Karl had decided he would take his time, something about the book seemed to hold a light to Kara and Lee's relationship, the secret longing that had probably always been there. Karl would have given anything to see what they were like when they first met. He had seen them together only once before the cylons came, but they had both been in a police lockup for drunk and disorderly charges. Luckily they had managed to get away with a night in a cell and a small fine without their superiors finding out. A Court Martial would certainly have marred Lee's squeaky clean record.

"Okay, I suppose you'd like the latest news from around the fleet?" asked Karl. "There was a hostage situation on Cloud 9 this week, some people demanding the execution of Sharon. They wanted revenge for the death of a loved one; fortunately Adama wouldn't give in to their demands. It all went a bit sour though when the marines stormed in and about 8 people were killed, including the hostage takers." Helo twisted in his chair to get more comfortable, "Dee keeps wittering on about how lucky she was that she had cancelled her date with Billy or they both could have been hurt. She missed out the part where she was avoiding Billy after his proposal to her, poor kid."

Karl looked up at Kara suddenly. Had she moved slightly? Karl could have sworn blind that she had twitched. He stared intently at her, willing for her to move, but there was nothing. It must have been his imagination. Kara still held colour in her cheeks and apart from the machines and tubing she still looked like she was asleep. Karl sat back in his chair again berating himself for getting his hopes up. He took her hand, which was still being held in a small cast. According to Cottle, Kara would need some physiotherapy on her hand before and after the cast could come off due to the amount of damage caused.

Karl swung his head round as he was suddenly aware of Ishay standing at the edge of the curtained off area with a medical trolley at her side.

"Sorry," she said. "Cottle was planning on examining Captain Thrace and taking a scan of the baby now she's reaching about 20 weeks."

Karl nodded and looked at the bump that over the last eight weeks had become gradually bigger. He had not, however, seen a scan of the baby since the first one after Kara had just been rescued, so Karl considered himself fortunate to be present for this one. "Can I watch?"

"Of course, just don't get in Cottles' way."

Ishay began to set up the monitor and equipment around the bed whilst Karl kept a close watch on what was being done. He had looked forward to every scan he was allowed to see of his own child, watching her grow week by week. He would be father soon, only about 10 weeks to go.

As Ishay pulled back the bedding that enshrined Kara, Karl found himself frowning. When she had been covered up, Karl could see that she was growing, but it wasn't until he saw her in the hospital gown that he realised how big she had gotten. She was as big as Sharon and hadn't hit the five month mark yet.

"Is that normal?" he asked out of curiosity.

"What?" asked Ishay in reply.

"She already looks..." he said gesturing to Kara's stomach. "Huge."

"She's not that big."

"Are other woman this big at less than five months?"

Ishay paused and thought for a moment, "not really," she conceded.

Cottle pulled back the curtain making Ishay jump and interrupting their conversation. He gave a low whistle and then shook his head. Karl guessed that the whistle was indicating Kara's size.

"I never thought I would see the day," Cottle said still shaking his head and then frowning.

"Come on doc," said Karl. "Are you sure she's only about 20 weeks?"

"I did study medicine Lieutenant," said Cottle frankly. "The foetus was too underdeveloped to be more than two to three months. Some women do look bigger than others and some even retain more water."

Karl nodded, Sharon was generally a slenderer woman than Kara, but he still couldn't believe that it could make that much of a difference. He kept silent however as Cottle started the scan by lifting Kara's gown and spreading a substance over the bump. He then used a wand to spread the gel. The peaceful sounds of the baby's heartbeat echoed around the room and a small dark image played across the monitor, which was on the trolley.

"There it is," said Cottle pointing to the small blob. "You can see the head there and its little body there. If Kara were awake she would be beginning to feel it move around."

"Is everything normal?" asked Karl and Ishay at virtually the same time.

"Looks to be, but I am going to do a thorough check." Even though Cottle had dismissed Karl's concerns he couldn't help but wonder about the cause of Kara's larger than average size. Everything seemed normal though as he moved the wand over her stomach. Suddenly he saw the baby move slightly and another shadow appeared on the monitor.

"Frak," cursed Cottle. "I think I may have found the cause of your concern Lieutenant, help me turn her Ishay."

Cottle placed the wand to the side and gently rolled Kara with the aid of Ishay, ensuring that none of the tubing came out. Karl leaned over and helped them relax Kara onto her side. Cottle used some more gel and placed the wand back down on the side of her stomach. After a few moments Cottle found what he was looking for and the sound coming from the machine changed slightly making it seem that there was an echo in the room.

"What the frak is that doc?" asked Karl.

"What I hope is the Captain's last surprise," said Cottle quizzically. He pointed to the screen again. "This is another head and body; it was just hiding behind the other. The sound your hearing is a second heartbeat."

"Twins?" asked Karl completely stunned.

"Unless she has another one hiding in there," replied Cottle dryly.

"Frak," was all Karl could think of to say as he watched the two images dancing on the screen.

******************************************************************************

_Battlestar Pegasus_

Lee ran through the long corridors of the Pegasus, attempting to clear his head as the sweat poured down his head. It was 0300 hours and Lee was wide awake having attempted and failed to sleep. He had managed it for about an hour until the nightmares racked his body, bringing him quickly out of his slumber. Running through the corridor in the middle of the night had become part of Lee's daily routine over the last four weeks, even the night guards were beginning to set their watches by him.

The nightmares were always the same; he was in that chair again with the blonde cylon smiling down at him, beginning her daily interrogation the same way every day.

"_Tell us where your fleet is hiding; you know what we'll do to her if you don't."_

Lee would forever be haunted by images from the first time he was taken to Kara's room. For weeks they had tortured him, asking him the same questions over and over again, wearing him down, and making him weaker by the day. Then one day they had taken him to Kara's room and strapped him to that chair. Kara had been lying on the floor barely moving, the gentle rise of her chest showing the only signs of life. She had been stripped of her flightsuit down to her briefs and tanks and her hands were bound by chains that hung all the way up to the top of the cage and then attached to a wall. Whilst the cylons had been torturing Lee to within an inch of his life, they had obviously been starving Kara. She looked weak and drawn out, her usually full and luscious lips were dry and chapped from lack of water and her hair was lank and dark.

Lee had to stop running as the thoughts started to take over his mind. He collapsed against the nearest wall and his knees gave out sending him crashing to the floor. Lee had felt himself start to hyperventilate as he had fallen, so he stuck his head between his knees and attempted to get his breathing under control.

Lee jumped when he felt the soft touch of a hand on his shoulder.

"Easy, take slow deep breaths in and then slow deep breaths out," said the woman, her voice strong and slightly gravely.

Lee tried to follow the woman's instructions, focusing on slowing down his breaths but the images of Kara lying on the floor of her cell kept invading his mind. Finally after several attempts he got his breathing under control enough to look up and see who had been gently rubbing his back. Lee nearly vomited on his shoes when he realised that it was Admiral Cain looming over him.

"Admiral Cain, sir" said Lee in a panicked voice as he attempted to stand up.

"At ease Captain we don't want you collapsing on the floor again," her voice was hard but there was a hint of concern latched on at the end. Lee was confused; he had no idea if Cain was genuinely worried about him or deciding which airlock to throw him out of. On the positive side, his confusion had worked in slowing down his breathing to a normal rhythm.

"I'm sorry sir, ran a bit too far and too fast," said Lee as he finally managed to stand up fully.

"I hear that is a common problem with you recently."

"Yes sir," Lee had considered lying, but the guards had probably told her already about his nightly runs, so thought it would be pointless.

"Is there something I should be concerned about?"

"No sir, I passed my psych evaluation and have been flying my viper for the last two weeks without a problem. I just have difficulty sleeping."

"I want you to see the doctor again for another evaluation," Cain said sternly. As Lee's shoulders slumped she added, "I'm not completely heartless Captain, I know how much you have been through, but I need officers I can rely on. I cannot risk you having an "episode" when you're out there leading my men."

"I understand sir."

"If you pass the test then you'll be back on duty, until then consider yourself grounded."

"Yes, sir."

"Go back and try and get some sleep we have a lot of jumps to plot tomorrow." After Lee had saluted and turned to leave she added, "oh and Captain, our counsellor was killed during the first wave of cylon attacks so if you need to talk about what happened my door is open."

"Thank you sir," said Lee in a slightly shocked voice.

"I didn't say I would always have time to listen. You need to get over this, you're part of my crew now and I expect nothing but the best."

Lee saluted again and walked away down the corridor heading back to his bunk room. He still didn't understand Cain or what was going on in her head. She came across as cold and he had heard some rumours that made her sound callous, but he knew that she cared for her crew and would do anything to ensure their survival.

Lee decided that he would try again at attempting to sleep; he had a lot to do in the morning. It was the third day of their long journey back to Caprica. So far all of the jumps had gone by without incident or miscalculation. Hoshi, who worked in the CIC, was nearly as particular and accurate as Gaeta and all his jump calculations were planned to perfection.

Lee crashed into his rack, immediately regretting not having showered first. He needed to sleep and his eyes were beginning to hurt from the deprivation. He reached under his mattress and grabbed the bottle of stims that he used to keep him going during the day. Lee had always promised himself that he would never use them, but for the last few weeks they were only things stopping him from collapsing completely. Lee squeezed his eyes shut; Kara would be ashamed of him. She had hated stims, saying that they dulled the senses and made you out of control, which is why she always criticised Tigh so much for his drunkenness.

Lee sighed and put the bottle back under his mattress; he would try and survive without them today. He rolled over and attempted to go sleep, knowing that it would be fruitless.

*******************************************************************************

_Colonial One_

Laura Roslin stared at the documentation that was spread over her desk. She had a lot of work to do in the next few months if she was going to beat Baltar in the upcoming election. He had completely taken her off guard when he announced that he would run for President. Now she was afraid of what would happen to the fleet if he succeeded.

Roslin's thoughts were interrupted by a sound at the other end of the room and she smiled as Billy entered carrying a warm drink in his hands.

"Madam President," he said with a smile and handed over the drink.

"Thank you Billy," replied Roslin returning his smile and leaning back in her chair. She took off her glasses and placed them gently down onto her desk. "We need to come up with a strategy if we're going to beat Baltar."

"Do you really think the fleet would be crazy enough to vote for him?"

"The Gemenese were not happy about what I did for that girl and the other half of the fleet was unhappy that I banned abortion."

"The latest polls have you ahead of Baltar; he has no niche to pull in the votes. He's running purely on his ego at the moment."

Roslin took a sip of her drink and grimaced slightly. She missed her freshly ground coffee from back home. The coffee in the fleet seemed to becoming more watered down as the weeks went on and she wasn't sure if it was even coffee anymore.

"I've had some updates from around the fleet," said Billy changing the subject and pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket. "Unfortunately we lost two people this week, both due to old age, from the Cybele and Greenleaf."

Roslin looked sadly at her coffee and then put it down, about to reach for her marker pen in order to adjust her survivor count. She was stopped by Billy who held out his hand.

"But we had three births this week, two born on the Rising Star and one on the Harrak. We also have reports of a number of pregnancies around the fleet." Billy smiled and then looked up at Roslin intently.

"What is it?"

"The Galactica sent a message saying that we should expect another baby from their ship." Roslin couldn't help her surprise at this news. The Galactica was a military ship and had only announced three pregnancies since the initial attacks, including the cylon, usually they sent over the list of their fallen soldiers and pilots. Billy smiled and continued, "Captain Thrace is expecting twins."

"Oh my gods," said Roslin. "Will they be the first multiple births since our exodus?"

"Yes they will and hopefully their mother will get to see them being born."

Roslin nodded, she hadn't thought of what to do if Captain Thrace didn't wake up. Where would the babies go? Cottle had already listed the father as unknown. "Billy, I need you to find me the list of adoption requests that have been sent to us since the initial attacks."

"Do you think Captain Thrace will not wake up?"

"I hope she does, truly I do, but we have to plan for every eventuality."

Billy nodded, "I'll go and get the records."

Roslin watched as Billy exited the room. She picked up her cup of coffee again and took a long sip. The warm fluid warmed her body as she swallowed making her feel suddenly at peace. All she had to do now was sort out the problem of the impending cylon birth.

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_Battlestar Galactica – The CIC_

Adama was resolutely quiet as he underwent his shift in the CIC. It was coming up to 1300 hours and his early shift was coming to an end. Recently there had not been a lot of cylon activity, the main threats they had encountered was from within the fleet itself. The hostage situation on board Cloud 9 had turned into a disaster that had claimed the lives of eight people, including two of his marines, Johnson and Patricks. Their losses had been too high, but Adama was still unyielding in his policy of never negotiating with terrorists.

Adama had been eating dinner with Tigh the previous evening when Cottle had come unannounced to his quarters. He had known immediately that he had come with an update on Kara's progress or lack thereof. Adama had to admit, however, that he was completely unprepared for Cottle's news. He had had enough of a difficult time imagining Kara as a mother, let alone juggling twins. Tigh had nearly choked on his noodles forcing Cottle to slap him on the back.

Ever since he had found out Kara's latest secret, Adama had a feeling that Tigh was itching to broach the subject with him. But Adama was not willing to discuss his feelings yet. Since finding out that Kara was pregnant, he had not even been able to go near lifestation, couldn't bear to watch her grow day by day.

Since Kara had first boarded the Galactica Adama had come to consider her as a daughter. They had shared a lot between each other when they had met up to talk about Zak on his birthday and the anniversary of his death. Since the cylons attacked Adama had unfortunately begun to find out more about Kara's secret persona, what she had done for Zak that had led to his death, and now the secret relations she had obviously kept. Adama had never blamed Kara for Zak's death, but he had felt angry and betrayed that she had kept it from him, and he felt angry now that she had gotten herself into such a situation on her own.

He also felt guilty, guilty that he inwardly wished that the woman he had considered to be his daughter had never returned to the Galactica. He felt guilty for wishing that it was Lee they had found on that baseship instead of Kara. It was an unforgivable desire and Adama could not face confronting that guilt.

The silence in the CIC was soon interrupted by red blips that appeared on the dradis and the ensuing klaxons that resounded throughout the ship.

"Launch alert fighters and order the fleet to begin emergency jumps," ordered Adama.

"Yes sir, we've got Kat and Duck in the tubes now," replied Gaeta.

Adama watched as he saw the two green blips emerge onto the dradis and head towards the incoming cylon raiders. They reached them within a few minutes along with the CAP that had stopped circling the fleet. Every few seconds green blips disappeared as ships jumped away successfully. Fortunately the cylons had not managed to reach into the heart of the fleet yet.

"Make that splash two," said Kat euphorically over the comm system. "That top gun trophy is mine," she added gloatingly.

"I've got a third one down Galactica," shouted Duck. "Kat, you'll always live in Starbuck's shadow."

Dualla broke through the pilot's banter, "Sir Colonial one and the remaining ships have now jumped."

"Recall all fighters," ordered Adama. "Start retracting the pods."

"Yes sir," replied Dualla and then spoke into her headset. "All vipers head for home, I repeat all vipers head for home, combat landings only."

Adama gripped the side of the tactical station and watched as the cylons shadowed the vipers that headed for home. The barrage of fire from the Galactica endeavoured to keep the raiders at bay as their birds landed. It was an agonising wait before Dualla announced that all vipers were on board.

"Get us out of here Mr Gaeta," Adama ordered.

Adama felt the familiar lurch as the ship seemed to shrink inside itself then there was a brief pop as the ship righted itself again. Adama looked up at the dradis and breathed a sigh of relief at all the green blips shining on the screen.

"All ships accounted for sir," said Dualla with a smile.

"Thank you Dee, Mr Gaeta begin preparations for the next set of jump co-ordinates."

Adama didn't wait for a response; instead he walked away and out of the CIC, feeling relieved that all his pilots had made it home today; unfortunately the most important pilot was still out there somewhere. The grief struck through Adama hard as he came to the realisation that each jump they made was taking them further and further away from Lee, wherever he was.

******************************************************************************

_Battlestar Pegasus_

Admiral Cain leafed through Dr Phillip's psych evaluation that he had performed on Captain Adama. He had passed but was suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. The Captain would be okay to fly his viper and had not shown any signs that his condition was affecting his flying. In fact the busier the Captain was the better he seemed to function. The doctor was concerned about the nightmares that were plaguing him during the night and had prescribed sleeping pills. Another report would be conducted in a few weeks time.

Cain closed the report, she still wasn't convinced. Apollo had barely been able to breathe in that corridor two nights ago, a few minutes more and she would have needed to call for emergency help.

During one of the jumps back towards Caprica, Apollo had seemed incredibly alert and almost wired, provoking Cain to conduct a secret search of his bunk and locker. It hadn't taken her long to find the bottle of stims. If the Captain kept going the way he was, then he would end up getting himself killed or even worse taking someone else with him.

As if on cue there was a knock on her door. She had put out a request for the Captain to come immediately to her office and it had not taken him long to arrive.

"Come in," called Cain.

Lee entered and then saluted sharply.

"As ease Captain," he dropped his arm and relaxed slightly so Cain continued. "You passed your evaluation. The doctor thinks that you're suffering from Post Traumatic Stress but states that you can complete your duties. I am, however, not convinced."

"Sir?"

"You should have thought of a better place to hide the stims, though I get the feeling hiding contraband isn't an art you've ever had to use before."

"Sir, I can..."

"I don't want to hear it Captain, I already know why, but it stops now. I'm not going to make it an order, but I expect them to be gone, do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sir."

"I need you back and drawing up the plans for our return to Caprica. What areas do we need to return to?"

"I think Delphi should be our first destination, that's where Lieutenant Thrace found the survivors. It's also the most likely place where we could find supplies and fuel."

"Finding Tylium and a refinery ship should be our first priority."

"I agree, again I believe we might have some luck in Delphi."

Cain nodded, "I want a full report by tomorrow, no exceptions."

"Yes sir."

"Dismissed, go and get some sleep."

Lee saluted and then left the room as quickly as he could without running. Any longer than a few minutes alone with Cain was too long. He jogged back to the senior officers bunk room and immediately removed the bottle of stims form their hiding place. He put them in the pocket of his flightsuit, making a personal vow to sneak them back to Dr Phillips tomorrow. Cain was right, he was far from okay, and he was falling further and further into a deep chasm of depression.

Lee lay down in his rack and took the sleeping pills out of his pocket; he poured two into his hand and studied them for a moment. The doc had said that the pills would virtually knock him out and it would be unlikely that he would be able to have any dreams. He slowly placed the pills on his tongue and then swallowed them down with a gulp of water.

A part of him was sad. He had hated the nightmares and wanted to sleep, but he would also miss not seeing Kara every night.

Lee's last thoughts were of her as the pills took hold plunging him into a deep sleep.

********************************************************************************

"I taught you to be a fighter Kara," said the voice that echoed through her dreams.

Kara felt safe again, away from the cylons. She was back on the beach and her mother's voice kept calling over the ocean. She had heard noises from far away, alarms blaring that brought to her the fear of danger, but at the same time they were comforting, the alarms meant she was home.

"Kara," said Socrata. "This isn't the place for you; you have so much more to do. You're special, always have been. You have a destiny and you have already chosen your path."

"You must protect them, Kara, always protect them."

Kara let go of her fear and as she felt herself leaving the beach, her mother's voice came through once more before it faded away, "I will see you again my Kara, not for a long time, but I will wait."

All Kara could see now was darkness, but once again she could smell the faint scent of cigarettes. She still could not make out where she was, but the smells were familiar and Kara decided that she would stay here for a while warm in the embrace of its comfort.

**AN: Yes I saved Billy, why? Because I loved Billy and missed him when he went. ( Again I am not a medical expert so don't be too critical :-P )**


	19. Harsh Reality

Chapter 18

Kara could feel the cool air blowing lightly against her face but she had no idea where it was coming from and guessed she must be outside. Kara couldn't remember how long she had been in the darkness, but was slowly beginning to make sense of what was around her and knew that she was alive.

What Kara really wanted to do was reach out and scream, but she couldn't move.

Every so often Kara could hear voices breaking through, but she couldn't make out the words. More recently she could only hear the vague noises coming from the machinery, but why was there machinery if she was outside? Kara was confused, where the frak was she?

All of a sudden Kara became aware of a presence, someone was with her and she could feel something or someone touching her hand but she couldn't pull away. However the sensation was not threatening and it actually made Kara feel safe and comforted. When the voice spoke she knew immediately that it was Helo.

"Hey Starbuck," he said, but Kara could tell something was wrong. "I'm sorry I haven't been to see you for a while, but I... I lost her, my daughter. She, frak... I'm sorry Kara, I've got to go."

Kara felt suddenly alone in the darkness and more than anything she wanted to break through and reach out to Karl, wanted to tell him she was sorry, but she was too weak.

**********************************************************************************

Laura Roslin had spent the entire morning preparing herself for her press conference on Colonial One. There were a number of areas to address regarding the state of the fleet and no doubt a lot of questions to answer. Roslin knew she had to keep her complete composure or risk falling behind Baltar who was still fighting strong. Her main focus was now the upcoming election, having solved the cylon problem. It was an act Roslin was not proud of but she hoped that in doing it she would ensure the safety and anonymity of the hybrid child.

"Madam President?" asked Billy as he cautiously entered Roslin's bedroom.

"Come in Billy, I'm just working on my speech."

"Sarah Porter would like to speak with you; she's getting a little impatient."

"Oh, okay let her come back here."

Billy walked out of the bedroom area to fetch Sarah Porter, the Gemenese Quorum Representative. Roslin knew that Sarah was still angry about the abortion she had allowed weeks ago, she was a very devout woman and closely followed the Sacred Scrolls.

It only took a few minutes before Billy returned with Sarah in tow. "Madam President," she said with a nod.

"Sarah, what can I do for you?" asked Roslin with a smile.

"I have been hearing rumours in the fleet."

"Unfortunately there are always rumours in the fleet, not all of them accurate."

Sarah nodded her head in acknowledgement of this fact. "This particular rumour had raised a lot of interest in my quarter. Is there any credence to the reports that a woman is expecting twins in the fleet?"

"Where did you hear that?"

"The rumour is rife throughout the Gemenese community. I hope you remember the symbolism that twins represent to my people." Roslin nodded, the twins were the sign of Gemenon just like the archer was the sign of Sagittaron.

"I can confirm that a set of twins is expected within the fleet," replied Roslin.

"We would very much like to meet the mother and pray for the babies' safe arrival," said Sarah looking elated.

"I am afraid that will not be possible at this time and I am not at liberty to reveal her name or location." Roslin knew that the last thing Adama wanted was the entire Gemenese population descending upon the Galactica.

Sarah did not look happy with this response, "Madam President, I really do not think that you fully appreciate the importance of this birth. There are a number of folk stories among our people that we believe complement the Sacred Scrolls. One story told of a troubled woman who had a choice, which was unknown to her, and she would be the mother of two children born on the same day, and they would be a source of our salvation."

Roslin suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. There were thousands of stories written by the Gemenese with a variety of legends, none of which ever came to pass and never would. "With all due respect, these babies cannot be the only twins in the fleet."

"I'm afraid they are and they will be the first set born since the cylons attacked. We believe the story is set during the exodus from the twelve colonies."

Roslin thought for a moment about what she had been told and then paced around the room, "thank you for bringing this to my attention. I assure you the woman in question will receive adequate protection but I am still not willing to disclose her identity at this point."

Sarah looked disappointed, "have it your way Madam President, but I warn you now that this is not the way to gain the support back from the Gemenese people." The representative turned abruptly and walked out of the room leaving Roslin alone.

Even though she had dismissed the myth, Roslin couldn't help but be intrigued by it. The Captain had always come across as being a "troubled" woman, emphasised further by her recent ordeal. However Roslin had not pinned the Captain as being the source of salvation for the fleet, but she could not discount the importance of protecting the babies, especially if the cylons might have heard the same story.

Roslin sighed and walked out of her room towards her desk where she had kept the adoption requests. She had spent the last few weeks looking through them for possible candidates; there were not many who seemed suitable and even fewer who would be able to accommodate two babies. Roslin had narrowed her search down to two couples; both were from the Rising Star and could not have children of their own. Roslin sat at her desk alone and considered the possibilities of what she could do.

********************************************************************************

Everything was starting to become clear and Kara could make out the distinct smells and noises in the room, knowing now that she was inside. She could feel the bed sheets surrounding her with warmth but she couldn't cry out for help due to something obstructing her mouth.

Kara pulled together all of the remaining strength she had and focused on opening her eyes, not wanting to be in the dark anymore. The room came into a blurred focus. Dim lights were shining down at her and she could only vaguely make out the metallic look of the ceiling. She was in lifestation, which meant she had somehow made it back to the Galactica.

Kara moved her head slightly to the side to make sure that she was definitely on board the Galactica. The tubing in her mouth hindered her progress. She reached up attempting to dislodge the tube but an alarm started to sound off next to her head. Kara swung her arm up as much as possible to try and knock away the noise, colliding painfully with an object, but succeeding in stopping the noise. Kara looked down at her hand, she was in a cast. Her mind flashed back suddenly to memories of the blond cylon and the centurion breaking her wrist, never before had Kara felt so much pain engulfing her body.

Kara felt along her face to the tape that was holding the tube in place and peeled it away. Next she held onto the top of the tube and began to pull it away, but it resisted. During her second attempt, Kara found herself silently coughing as she pulled and this time the tubing gave way. It seemed to take forever before the entire tube was out, making Kara gag before she could take in long gasps of air. Her lungs ached with each breath she took and her throat was raw and swollen.

What had happened to her?

Kara's eyes were beginning focus now and she could make out the ceiling of the room. The lights had been dimmed, which meant it must be night-time. She was in a curtained off area that contained only herself, a bed and the machine next to her. Kara didn't know what to do next, she couldn't will her voice to speak nor could she gather enough energy to move more than her arms.

Kara lay there for what seemed like hours just staring at the ceiling and making out the patterns as her vision cleared. She had never felt so weak before, even after being shot she had managed to gather up enough strength to move.

Kara suddenly felt the strange and unfamiliar flutter come from her belly.

She froze at the alien sensation that was gripping her body, what the frak had they done to her? Kara looked down slowly at her body to see if anything was wrong. The panic gripped her immediately and the adrenaline pulsed through her body as she pushed herself upwards and then backwards. Kara couldn't stop the momentum, throwing herself out of the bed and crashing to the floor. Pain rocked through her entire body causing her vision to blur again.

After a few moments she was able to focus again and the room righted itself. Kara felt the strange fluttering again, sending her heart racing as she saw the roundness of her stomach. She pushed herself backwards sliding across the floor in the vain hope that she could leave her stomach behind.

What had they done to her? She couldn't be on the Galactica, the cylons had tricked her. They had hooked her up to one of those frakking baby machines. They had violated her and now she was going to bear a cylon child.

Kara felt a sharp pain in her hand and saw that there was a tube injected under the skin. She winced as she pulled it out, sending a small splattering of blood onto the floor. Then Kara noticed all of the other wires sticking out of her in various places. She pulled them all away from her skin in turn ignoring the pain and the damage she might be causing. The last tube Kara felt was between her legs, her hand shook as she pulled it out as gently as possible but the pain was excruciating as she finally pulled it free and threw it to the side.

Kara pulled her legs towards her as much as she could and pushed her back up against the wall partially hidden by the bed. Kara hoped that if she could hide here the cylons might not be able to find her, but she knew they would anyway.

She had to get out of there and fast.

Kara concentrated her hardest at attempting to lift herself up to standing, hoping that the adrenaline would kick in harder. After several attempts and many minutes later, Kara managed to grab onto the rail of the bed and pull herself upwards. Her knees collapsed straight away from the weakness but she managed to stay upright, walking would be a lot harder.

Kara held herself up against the bed, terrified that someone would come for her at any moment, she closed her eyes as the tears started to pool and said a silent prayer in her mind, "Lords of Kobol hear my prayer, please don't let the cylons find me, give me the strength to get away."

Kara felt like a baby taking its first steps as she took gradual steps towards the end of the bed using it as a support. Kara said another silent prayer and then let go of the bed rail, her knees were still bent slightly but she was still standing, daring to pull the curtain apart an inch to see if anyone was around. A brunette woman walked away from her on the other side of the room and then disappeared, and there seemed to be another occupant in a bed. Kara walked slowly towards the bed to see what the cylons had done to Lee.

It seemed to take her forever to cross the room, not only were her legs and body weak but she had the unfamiliar and disturbing weight protruding from her belly. When Kara finally reached the bed she saw that the occupant was asleep and he wasn't Lee. Where the frak was he? The confusion and weakness were starting to fog her brain making it difficult to concentrate and giving Kara the overwhelming want to go back to her bed and sleep. But she knew that was what the cylons wanted.

Kara pushed herself towards the exit of the room suddenly seeing the armed man stood just outside the room. Grabbing the nearest heavy object she could find, Kara exited the room as quietly as she could, but the attuned ears of the marine made him spin round.

"Starbuck?" the marine managed to say before a sharp blow struck the side of his head. He lost consciousness immediately and crumpled to the floor. Kara tried to focus on who the marine was, he looked familiar, everything did and for some reason that was scaring her the most. She had no recollection of how she had got here or what had happened. The last thing she could remember was being in that cage on the baseship and Lee being dragged away from her.

If they had been rescued, where was Lee? Kara really wanted to believe that she was safe on the Galactica, but she knew her mind must be playing tricks on her. The cylons had enjoyed feeding her hallucinogenic drugs, then making her believe she was safe before bringing her crashing back to reality. Kara's head was really hurting and her vision was blurring. She would not give up now though and managed to crouch down using the wall as a support and grab the sidearm from the fallen marine. Kara then inched her way along the wall down the corridor. Fortunately no-one seemed to be around as she made her escape.

**********************************************************************************

Ishay was performing her usual nightly rounds in lifestation and had just finished attending to Corporal Aims, who had been injured during the last attack by the cylons. He had only knocked his head and should be out of the lifestation in the morning. During the night, checks only had to be done every hour, only less often if they had a critical patient in.

Ishay had a few records to log before checking on her long term patient. Cottle had said that in the past few weeks she had shown signs of improvement but Starbuck had not given any indication that she was going to wake up anytime soon, which made it even the more shocking when Ishay pulled back the curtain to find the bed empty with tubes and wires thrown about everywhere. There was a splattering of blood on the floor from where Starbuck's IV must have been pulled out and a tiny patch of fluid flowing from the end of what must have been her catheter.

It took Ishay a few seconds to finally shout out, "doc!!" at the top of her voice. Aims leapt up in bed startled, his head throbbing. Ishay spun round towards him, "Get help now, get the on-guard marine."

Aims threw himself out of bed as soon as he saw the empty bed opposite him. Since he had been in lifestation the curtains had been kept strictly closed but he knew who was supposed to be in there.

Ishay ran towards Cottle's quarters and flew open the door. Cottle had already woken up when she had yelled and was busy throwing on his shoes.

"What the frak is it?" he asked reaching for his cigarettes. "Someone had better be dying to get me out of bed at 0300 hours."

"Captain Thrace is gone," replied Ishay as calmly as she could.

"What!?" exclaimed Cottle launching himself out of the room and heading towards Kara's bed. He was also shocked to see the bare bed, the ventilator no longer pumping oxygen.

"Sir," cried out Aims through the entrance to Lifestation, "Anderson is down."

Cottle moved quickly to the entrance of the lifestation and examined the marine, "he's just out cold, go and get Lieutenant Agathon and tell him to get a team together to quietly look for Thrace."

"Shouldn't we lock down the ship?"

"The Private's sidearm is missing, Thrace might be confused and we don't want to panic her by waking up the whole ship. Tell him to lock down the hangar bay and arms lockers only."

Aims ran off down the corridor as Cottle motioned for Ishay to help him with the marine, who was starting to come round.

"Doc?" he said slurring slightly. "Frak my head, doc it was Starbuck, she was walking."

"Yes, we're aware of that Private. Are you sure she was alone?"

"I think so; she's the one that hit me."

********************************************************************************

Aims ran down the corridor heading for the senior officer's bunk room. It didn't take him long to reach the quarters, despite his pounding headache, and throw open the door. The room was dark as people were sleeping so Aims groped forward to reach and open Karl's curtain and started to shake him awake.

"What the frak?" asked a sleepy Karl.

"Sir, Cottle needs your help immediately."

"What? Why? What's happened, is it Starbuck?" asked Karl concerned as he threw his legs over the side of his bunk, ignoring the shouts from various bunks telling him to shut the frak up.

"She's missing, she must have woken up and freaked out. She's got a gun."

"Frak," replied Karl running to his locker to pull on some pants.

"Cottle asked you to get a team together and lock down the hangar bay."

Karl nodded, "go and get some marines together," he said to Aims and then shouted to the room, "everyone up now!"

Karl went round and threw open everyone's curtains, "everyone up we have a Captain to find."

There were various curses and grunts as the tired pilots dragged themselves out of the racks and pulled on their slacks. Most of them were still half dressed when Karl ordered them out of the room to convene in the corridor. Aims had managed to grab a similarly underdressed group of marines and two marines who had obviously been on duty. As they were congregating Karl quickly called through to the lifestation to speak to Cottle before he joined them.

"What's going on sir?" asked Kat as she was doing up her slacks.

"Listen up everyone, I'll make this quick. At around 0300 hours Captain Thrace woke up from her coma," Karl began. There were a number of whisperings around the corridor as people took in this news, making Karl have to speak louder. "It seems that Starbuck bolted from her bed and left the lifestation, knocking out a marine in the process and stealing his sidearm. She's somewhere on this ship and we need to find her. Doc Cottle says she might be confused as to where she is, confused and frightened so we need to find her before she does herself some harm."

"Or does someone else harm," added Kat with a snarl.

Karl ignored her, "I want minimal force only, she's weak and will not put up a fight."

"What if she starts firing?" asked Hotdog, who was dressed only in slacks and one tank having left his boots behind.

Karl sighed; he didn't really have an answer. "I'm hoping we can get through to her before that."

Kat took out her sidearm and chambered a round.

"What did I just say Kat?"

"I'm not going to risk being shot."

Karl sighed again, "listen everyone; the Captain is not the same as when you last saw her. She's been in a coma, she's weak and she's also heavily pregnant."

This time the corridor was quiet as they took in the news.

"Is it..." began Hotdog.

"It's not cylon," finished Karl.

Hotdog reached out and grabbed Kat's gun before she had time to protest, and then emptied the round that she had chambered.

Karl nodded, "let's split up into groups of three and spread out in the areas surrounding lifestation, it's unlikely she's gotten very far."

*******************************************************************************

Kara inched herself down the corridors, using the wall for support. She could feel her body failing and she wanted to curl up into a ball on the floor and sleep, but she had to escape from her prison. Everything seemed familiar, but it had to be a trick.

Kara had to stop as her legs would not take her any further. The corridors were still quiet and she had managed to evade the two people who came her way. Her body was weakening and Kara felt that she had expended the remaining energy she had left. Her back slumped against the wall and she held the gun up in her uncast hand. She could no longer focus on the corridor and her hand was shaking so much that she nearly dropped the gun.

Kara could just make out the figures that started to come towards her slowly. They had found her and there was nothing she could do, even if she shot them they would download and come back. Kara ignored the voices calling out for her, telling her that everything would be okay, and pushed away from the wall turning the gun towards her own temple.

The tears started to streak down her face but she couldn't pull the trigger, she couldn't end her life with a bullet in her brain, forgotten.

******************************************************************************

Karl had already been searching for ten minutes and was not prepared for seeing the state of his best friend when he rounded one corner and saw her slumped against the wall. Despair was written across her face and she had a gun in her hand. Kat and Duck had followed closely behind him but he signalled for them to stay back.

"Kara, its Helo, put the gun down."

Kara had obviously not heard him because she began to aim the gun directly at his chest, but her aim was erratic as her hand kept shaking.

"Kara, you're safe, everything is going to be okay, you're home."

Karl saw the tears start to streak down Kara's face as she aimed the gun at her own temple and began walking backwards away from him. She was obviously so confused that she didn't know where she was.

"Kara don't," said Karl in a panicked voice. "I promise you that you're safe, you're on the Galactica."

Karl could see Hotdog come around the corner behind Kara. He had stopped briefly in his tracks and then sneaked in his bare feet towards her noticing the gun.

"Kara, it's me Helo, do you remember?" asked Karl again.

The tears were still streaming down her face as she pulled the gun away from her head slightly. Hotdog seized the opportunity and grabbed at Kara's arm knocking the gun out of her hand. He pinned her arms as she struggled against him. She was easy to hold as her strength started to wane and her knees gave out. Hotdog attempted to protect Kara and the bump by holding onto her firmly and gently collapsing underneath her, breaking her fall.

All the fight seemed to have left Kara now and she was barely conscious. Karl walked up to her carefully and held out his hand.

"Kara, it's okay, you're home."

As she lay there uncomfortably on the floor, Kara could hear the voice reaching her. They had found her but the voice did not make her feel afraid.

"Starbuck, it's Helo, I'm not going to hurt you."

This time Kara heard him, heard Karl say her name. Perhaps she really was home. She suddenly became aware of more voices surrounding her and then a sharp prick on her arm before everything went black.

*******************************************************************************

Cottle had arrived quickly and administered an injection to knock Kara out. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief as she fell unconscious. It was a few moments before anyone could speak.

"Sir, can you help me move her?" asked Hotdog a little sheepishly. "She's a little bit heavy."

Cottle nodded towards the stretcher that had just arrived, "get her on the gurney. I want her back in lifestation."

"Okay," said Karl. "Constanza you hold her arms and I'll grab her legs."

The two men attempted to lift Kara as carefully as they could onto the gurney, whilst maintaining as much of her dignity as possible in the hospital gown. Everyone stood aside in silence as Kara was briskly taken down the corridor towards lifestation.

To Karl it seemed like a lifetime ago when Kara had last spoken to him, when she had told him about Lee. Since then he'd had to endure the agony of finding a battered and bruised half-dying Kara on the baseship, watch her day after day lying in a hospital bed probably oblivious to the life growing in side of her, and then finally seeing the broken woman he had seen in the corridor. Kara had always been a fighter but it seemed that all of her exuberance has been drained from her body and soul.

Karl wanted to reach out and strangle the cylons who had done this to her, and he also had some strong words to say towards Lee. Even though Karl knew that Kara could make her own choices, he couldn't help but be angry at seeing her predicament.

"What's going on Helo?" asked Adama as he walked up to him. He looked as dishevelled as the rest of them, like he too had just gotten out of bed. "I just saw Starbuck being taken towards lifestation. Cottle said that she's woken up."

"Yes sir, and decided to go for a walk."

"Did she say anything?"

"No Sir, nothing. She was upset, but didn't say anything."

Adama nodded, "I want everyone back to their quarters now, and I would appreciate it if all of you could try and keep Starbuck's condition to yourselves."

Various officers voiced their assent and then walked away towards their respective rooms leaving Adama and Karl alone.

"The same goes for you Lieutenant," said Adama.

"Yes sir," replied Karl turning and walking away leaving Adama in the corridor.

*******************************************************************************

Adama waited for hours outside the lifestation. He wasn't waiting for Cottle or an update but he found himself unable to leave and unable to approach Kara's bed. Adama was resolute in his vigil outside the room, content to just watch the day go by. He had a number of questions to ask Kara about what had happened on board the baseship and more importantly what had happened to Lee.

Cottle had come to him at around 0900 hours to say that Kara had woken up from her mild sedative. She was less panicked, but had still not said a word.

It was now 1800 and she had been asleep for the last five hours, which Cottle said was to be expected. Kara had still not said a word to anybody or even acknowledged their existence. They were unsure if Kara was capable of understanding where she was, but Cottle suspected that Kara just didn't want to speak to anyone until she was ready.

Adama sighed and knew he had to see her, but he couldn't face it today. He slowly walked away down the corridor towards his quarters and poured himself a stiff drink as he sat down at his desk. He had just finished filling his second glass when the phone started to ring.

"Adama," he said into the receiver.

"Commander," said the welcoming voice of Laura Roslin. "I've been trying to get hold of you all day. They kept telling me you were unavailable, is everything okay?"

"Captain Thrace woke up last night," answered Adama taking a swig of his ambrosia.

"That's incredible news," replied Roslin happily. "How is she?"

"Hard to tell," he took another swig. "She won't talk to anyone, even Lieutenant Agathon tried."

"With everything that she has been through, it's hardly surprising."

"It's damn irritating," said Adama bluntly. "I need answers."

Roslin paused for a moment before answering, "Give her a chance, Bill. It cannot be easy for her, she must be confused." Adama didn't respond so Roslin carried on, "Just give her some time."

"I need to go Madam President, please excuse me," answered Adama and then hung up the phone. He grabbed his drink and downed the remaining fluid in one gulp. It burned his throat but he didn't care as he opened the bottle and filled the glass back up.

******************************************************************************

It was now 2100 hours and Kara had been asleep for most of the day. She was aware of the people around her and knew that she was on the Galactica. Kara only vaguely remembered what had happened when she had woken up, but she could evoke the panic that had gripped her and the familiar voice of Karl breaking through.

When she had awoken again, Cottle had inserted a small tube into her nose that made her want to sneeze. Kara hadn't removed the tube; she didn't have the energy or the inclination. All she wanted to do was roll over and forget about what had happened to her, which was a fruitless task because each time she rolled over to try and get some sleep her protruding belly would hinder her.

She could feel it inside of her moving, hijacking her body. The cylons had made her worse nightmares into a reality. Kara knew that she must have been in the coma for a long time because her stomach was huge. She closed her eyes, vainly hoping that when she opened them the bump would be gone and Lee would be at her side.

_Where was Lee?_

Kara knew that if Lee was on board the Galactica he would have been to see her by now, but Kara was not ready to contemplate the implications of this fact. She couldn't face accepting that he hadn't been rescued from the cylons. Kara rolled over as much as she could onto her side, wincing slightly as the IV pulled at the back of her wrist. She had been in a coma for at least seven months but she still felt exhausted and wanted to sleep.

The sound of the opening curtain that surrounded her bed was not a welcome distraction to Kara's trepidation. She had ignored all her visitors so far, even Karl, mainly because she wasn't ready to find out what she feared was already true.

The person walked around behind her and seemed to fiddle with some of the machinery that surrounded her. Kara recognised immediately the gruff voice of Cottle, "You keep rolling over like that and you'll pull your IV out. I've just finished cleaning up the blood from the last time."

Kara resisted rolling her eyes; it was somewhat comforting to see that Cottle hadn't changed a bit. Everyone else seemed to be talking to her as if she was a helpless puppy, at least the doc was straight and to the point.

"Right young lady, I believe there are a number of things we need to discuss, whether you decide to join in or not." Cottle had never been a subtle man, but he knew this was the only way to get through to Kara. He saw her swallowing so knew that she was listening and only choosing not to acknowledge his existence.

He grabbed a chair and sat down at the foot of the bed. Kara was really not in the mood for hearing what the good doctor had to say, but unfortunately she was unable to block out his voice.

"I think you must have already worked out that you're pregnant, so I won't sport with your intelligence by explaining that to you," said Cottle pausing for a moment as Kara shifted slightly in the bed. "It's not cylon."

Kara felt the tears pool in her eyes at Cottle's words, as the implications were starting to hit home for her.

"Baltar conducted some tests and confirmed what I already suspected. You were pregnant _before _you left Galactica, they're human," said Cottle seemingly unaware of his slip up. "You're at about 22 weeks now and you've been in a coma for 10 weeks. I'll save you the math by telling you that I estimate the conception to be around the time you disappeared." Cottle knew that he was pushing a lot onto Kara at once, but he thought it was the only way to get her to co-operate.

Kara felt the tear streak down her cheek before she could stop it. Her first thought was of Lee, which quickly turned to "_oh frak Lee_." It was impossible; she had been on the contraceptive patch hadn't she? How the frak could Lee get her pregnant when she was using protection?

She was pregnant with Lee's child and she didn't know where he was. She was alone.

"I'm concerned about you and your baby's health, especially after your fall," continued Cottle. "I would like..."

"Get out." Kara's voice was raspy and hoarse from weeks of living off a ventilator, but her meaning was clear.

Cottle didn't need asking twice, he had achieved what he had set out to do. He had let Kara know that she wasn't carrying a cylon child and she had finally acknowledged that she understood what was going on. Cottle stood as quietly as he could and walked away closing the curtain behind him.

Kara was vaguely aware that he had gone, which was enough to allow her resolve to completely dissolve and the tears poured down her cheeks. She lay there hiding her head in her pillow attempting to dull the sobs that wouldn't stop coming.


	20. Fear

Chapter 19

Kara had found herself crying so much in the days after waking up that she thought her tear ducts had tried up. Her eyes were red and puffy and her throat was hoarse, not that she attempted to speak more than the two words she had said to Cottle. The lifestation staff had continued to come to her bed every couple of hours so they could check her pulse and the tubes attached to her in various places. Kara knew that one of the tubes must be feeding her because she had been awake for three days now without eating and she wasn't hungry.

Mostly Kara had slept when she was on her own, attempting to keep her mind off her predicament, which was impossible due to the flutters she kept feeling and the occasional kick rebounding off her insides.

Kara was having difficulty believing what was going on. She was pregnant and Lee was the father and Kara really had no idea what she was going to do next. It was a scenario that she had to admit she had never planned for, having been so doggedly determined never to have a child.

It was about 1100 hours and Kara was lying in her bed contemplating her options, when Cottle came through the curtains with a dish of food in his hand. The look of the food suddenly looked very appealing to Kara and she attempted to sit up in the bed.

"Hey, take it easy," said Cottle. "Your little expedition the other day drained your remaining energy."

Kara ignored him and continued to try and sit herself up, her belly hindering her progress. She suppressed the urge to curse as she gave up and threw her head back into her pillows. Kara looked up to the ceiling and covered her eyes with her hand, willing herself not to get emotional again.

"Come on Captain," said the doctor and put down the plate of food on a table. He then walked over to Kara and hooked his hands under her arms. Kara flinched. "If you want to sit up, you'll need some help," Cottle added gruffly.

Kara seemed to relax and Cottle gently lifted her torso and then repositioned the pillows upright as he held her.

"Okay, on the count of three shuffle backwards," he said. Kara didn't respond so Cottle started his countdown. When he reached three Kara pushed backwards as Cottle guided her until she was sitting against the pillows.

Kara felt infinitely better to be sitting up, however her protruding belly felt strange as she adjusted to her new position. Cottle brought over a tray table, set down the plate of food and then passed her a fork from his pocket. Kara couldn't remember the last time she had eaten a meal as she grabbed the fork from Cottle's hand and started to eat. It didn't take long for Kara to remember how bland the food was and curled up her lip at the taste.

Cottle stood next to the bed for a few moments and then started to walk away sadly.

"You know, don't you?" asked Kara, her voice still weak.

Cottle turned back to her, surprised to hear her voice again, "what do you mean?"

Kara put down her fork and glanced guiltily down to her stomach. Cottle got her meaning.

"I may have had a conversation with Lieutenant Agathon."

"Frakking Helo," muttered Kara under her breath, wishing that she had kept her mouth shut all those months ago. A panicked thought gripped her suddenly, "the old man doesn't know does he?"

"I do have some discretion Captain, but he may want some answers from you."

"Can you lie, and put on my records that there are a number of possibilities, no clear way of knowing who the father is?" asked Kara looking desperate and ashamed. Most of the crew had considered her to be a slut for many years so she might as well keep up the facade.

Cottle nodded, "your secret will be safe with me and Helo."

Kara breathed a sigh of relief; she really couldn't face explaining to Adama that he was going to be a grandfather. The very thought made her stomach lurch. "What else are you not telling me doc?"

Cottle took a chair and sat down next to the bed, "what makes you think I've left anything out?"

Kara squeezed her eyes closed and then looked the doctor resolutely in the face, "I'm no medical expert doc, but I don't look five months pregnant, also the other day you said _they're _human."

Cottle made a mental note to admonish himself later for his slip up, and to always remember that Kara was far more astute than he originally considered. "Well..."

"Oh gods," interrupted Kara. "Please tell me there are no more than two in there."

Cottle chuckled slightly, "no I assure there is only two, I checked thoroughly."

Kara looked away from the doctor and closed her eyes, willing the tears not to come. After she had composed herself she turned back to Cottle and looked at him directly. The tears pooled in her eyes as she spoke in a small voice, "he's dead isn't he?"

"We were hoping _you_ could shed some light on that," replied Cottle.

Kara looked confused so Cottle continued. "You were found on board a baseship, which was abandoned and seemed to be dying. They found some of Apollo's clothing but he wasn't on board. You were both previously declared as having been killed in action."

Kara didn't know how to respond to hearing that she had been declared dead. Kara found herself wondering if they had conducted a funeral, what people had said about her and if her picture was up in the memorial corridor. Then she gravely wondered if the crew had done the same for Lee, if their pictures were together and if they were missed. Kara lifted her fork slowly and took a few more mouthfuls of food before she gave up and shoved her plate away.

"You need to eat to get your strength back up," said Cottle. "And don't forget you're eating for three now."

Kara felt the anger bubble inside her, clenched her cast fist around the fork and then forcefully threw it across the lifestation sending it clattering to the floor. She was angry at everyone and everything, angry at the cylons for what they had done to her and Lee, and angry at the unwanted situation she had found herself in.

"I don't want to have to keep feeding you through a tube, but I will if necessary," warned Cottle in a stern voice. His main priority was getting the Captain back to health but he had to consider the wellbeing of the two lives inside of her.

Kara didn't respond, choosing to look down at her hands, the small cast and ever reminder of what had happened to her and Lee. Her hand was stiff and ached from the exertion of throwing the fork. She dreaded to see what the rest of her looked like, the lash marks that scarred her back and thighs and the internal damage that the cylons had no doubt inflicted upon her. Kara's emotions took control of her as she remembered back and the tears welled in her eyes until she couldn't hold them anymore.

Kara felt his warm embrace before she had even realised that Karl had entered lifestation. She buried her head in his shoulder and fought to keep back the tears.

"Hey, it's going to be okay Kara," he said wrapping his arms around her torso. He nodded to Cottle in order to indicate that it was okay for him to leave. Cottle took the hint and walked away pointing to the plate of the food.

After a few minutes Kara pulled back and wiped her eyes with her sleeve. She was ashamed of being so weak, the pregnancy sending her hormones all over the place.

"I believe you threw this," said Karl cleaning off a fork with the bottom of his tanks and passing it to Kara. She took it and began to take small mouthfuls of the food again, Cottle was right she needed to get her strength back up. She needed to show that she was a fighter.

As she ate, Kara started to recall words but could not remember when they had been spoken to her. Karl was telling her about losing his child.

"Oh my Gods Helo, I'm so sorry," she said weakly. "You're child, I remember you telling me, I'm so sorry."

Karl felt the grief grip him, "she was premature and there were some complications."

Kara held out her arm and pulled Karl back into an embrace. They had both lost so much, everyone who had survived the attacks had, but this was the first time they had both felt it. They had been equally lonely having been only children who had lost their parents prior to the attacks, living their lives completely alone.

**********************************************************************************

_Battlestar Pegasus_

Lee vowed to forever worship the greatness that was Doctor Phillip's sleeping pills. For the last two weeks he had finally slept without dreaming or interruption. He looked in the mirror of his locker and could finally see the Adama profile looking back at him. His blue eyes had their shine back and his cheeks had filled out slightly.

The Pegasus had been successfully jumping back towards Caprica; the constant jumps every couple of hours making his stomach lurch. Lee had managed to integrate himself into the crew and no longer felt that he had daggers stabbing him in the back every time he walked down the corridor. He was flying his viper without freaking out and the crew had come to accept him as the CAG.

Cain had predicted that it would take the Pegasus about four weeks to reach Caprica depending on how many jumps they managed per day. Lee remembered the days following the cylon attacks, the hundreds of jumps they had made every 33 minutes. He was new to the crew then, with Kara as his D-CAG. Lee laughed to himself remembering the stupid argument they had had over taking the stims, and the moment they had shared following their 200th jump. Kara had been getting dressed at her locker after a long shower, but had accidently put her tanks on inside out and backwards. They couldn't stop laughing after she realised her mistake, nearly hysterical from the sleep deprivation. Kara had been laughing so hard she forgot to correct the mistake, wondering later why she was so uncomfortable for the 201st jump.

Hoshi's voice sounded over the intercom system, "All hands brace for FTL jump in twenty seconds, I repeat all hands brace for FTL jump in twenty seconds."

Lee leaned his arms against the locker as a support. Hoshi had been calling out the warning for the impending jump for the last hour but the pull and lurch as the FTL drive kicked in still made Lee's stomach do somersaults.

The claxons sounded a few seconds after the jump making Lee jump. It took him less than two minutes to throw on his flightsuit, grab his helmet and run out of the bunk room. His viper was ready and waiting and Lee did not hesitate as he ran up the steps to the cockpit and placed his helmet over his head.

Lee had always loved the feel of the g-forces shoving him back into his seat as the viper was launched out of the tubes. Within seconds Lee was thrown into the depths of space, he kicked in the burners and headed for the action. A single baseship loomed ahead with at least thirty raiders heading their way. Lee knew that Cain was unlike his father, in that the Pegasus would not be jumping away anytime soon. There was no fleet to protect and Cain was hungry for revenge.

As Lee expected Cain's voice came over his comm system, "All pilots to engage raiders, the Pegasus will close in to take out the baseship."

Lee shook his head in disbelief; the pilots were outnumbered three to one, but he knew that he had a job to do. "Apollo to all pilots, standard manoeuvres. Jerry you're on me, it's time for some toaster hunting."

It only took four minutes for the vipers to reach the raiders and Lee went in fast and furious with his guns blazing. He wanted to kill as many raiders as possible, each explosion bringing him closer to redemption. He smiled as the nearest toaster flew apart, the blood splattering across the viper's hull. Lee knew that he was being reckless but didn't give a frak, for the first time he felt what it was like not to fear death with nothing to live for, and it was liberating.

He weaved through the raiders destroying everything that got in his way.

"Apollo, I've lost you, where are you? I have a raider on my ass closing fast," shouted Jerry down the comm.

"Hold on Jerry I'm on my way," replied Lee as he spun his viper end on end and engaged the raider that was dogging Jerry. He let out a big whoop as his viper smashed through the debris, the raider didn't even have the chance to fire.

"Hold on," shouted Jerry. "I think I've got another..."

Jerry's transmission was cut off abruptly by a small scream followed by his viper exploding.

"Frak!" shouted Lee. "Pegasus, Apollo I've lost my wingman. Make that a total of six vipers down."

"Hold your position Apollo," replied Cain. "We've got six more raiders heading your way; they'll be with you in sixty seconds."

Lee cursed under his breath, they would probably all be dead in sixty seconds, but he still continued his rampage through the raiders taking out two more in quick succession but there were at least 15 more raiders surrounding them. Normally Lee would be ordering his squadron to turn for home and the Galactica would be prepping to jump away, but not with Cain in command. Cain wouldn't leave until all of the cylons were destroyed.

The explosion as the baseship was ripped apart was the most beautiful thing Lee had ever seen, it was mesmerising as the nearby raiders also crumbled from the flying debris. The shards from the fuselage of one particular raider shot across Lee's bow forcing him to veer away violently. He felt the lurch hit his stomach as bullets rocked across the right wing of his viper and his cockpit shorted out as he struggled to keep her under control.

"Kryptor, kryptor, kryptor, I'm spinning out of control!" shouted Lee struggling to get the words out through the g-forces.

His viper spiralled wildly, heading into the direct firing line of another raider. Lee, knowing that it was useless to fight for control, grabbed the lever to the side of his chair and pulled. The next two seconds were a blur as the canopy flew off the top of his viper and his chair was launched out at a high velocity. Lee barely had time to register his viper exploding before he passed out into blackness.

When he awoke Lee found himself floating through space, still attached to his chair. The battle was dissipating beneath him as the last few raiders were destroyed. They had won and taken an entire baseship with them.

It seemed to take forever for the recovery raptor to reach him. One of the occupants opened the hatch and floating gently towards him and unhooked him from the chair. It was a strange sensation as he drifted from the chair and was pulled towards the raptor. Once inside, the hatch was closed and the gravitational effects came back into action sending him to the floor. Lee immediately unfastened his helmet and pulled it from his head taking in the atmosphere of the raptor.

"You okay Sir?" asked Ratchet.

"Yeah," said Lee a little unsure and taking a mental catalogue of all his extremities to ensure that everything was where it should be. He wasn't in any pain, except for a slightly stiff neck, so guessed that everything was okay. "Yeah, I think so," he said slightly more confidently.

"You're not the only one floating out there Sir," added Ratchet. "Five of you managed to punch out in time."

Lee breathed a sigh of relief that they hadn't lost all the pilots that had been shot down, "is my viper salvageable?"

"I doubt it Sir, there's pieces of it everywhere."

"Frak," said Lee, he had just gotten used to that viper.

Lee launched himself to a standing position and walked towards the front of the raptor. There was debris everywhere and he saw a large sheet of metal, which used to be his wing drift past the window.

"Nice to see you made it one piece Sir," said Fish without much conviction behind her words. "The Admiral has given us orders to return straight back home to prepare for multiple FTL jumps."

Lee nodded, multiple jumps after a cylon attack was a concept he was all too familiar with.

*******************************************************************************

_Battlestar Galactica_

Kara was bored, there was nothing to do in lifestation except stare at the walls and she was about ready to throttle somebody, at least now she could sit up with some new scenery to look at.

During the past day Kara had felt some of her energy return and was feeling a lot better, no longer possessing the urge to sleep all the time.

The old man had still not been to see her, but had sent an envoy in the form of Colonel Tigh, who hadn't changed a bit. He had laughed as soon as he saw her stomach stating that he never thought he would see the day. Tigh had then ordered her to complete a report on what had happened leading up to and during her capture. Tigh hadn't been interested in hearing Kara explain that she couldn't remember anything, which was a lie. Kara could remember every agonising moment but she was not willing to disclose this information or any details yet.

Kara cursed loudly and shifted in the bed slightly attempting to get comfortable.

"You know, it was very quiet when you were in a coma," said Cottle walking up to her bed with a clipboard in his hand. He was secretly glad to see some of Kara's vivacity return.

"Yeah well, I didn't ask to be here," said Kara shifting again. "Frak, do you make these beds uncomfortable on purpose?"

"Yes, it stops people from wanting to stay in here too long."

Kara rolled her eyes and leaned forward to try and plump up the pillows behind her. She suddenly felt a sharp twinge emanating from around her bellybutton and could not suppress the small gasp that escaped her lips as she instinctively grabbed at her stomach for protection.

"What's wrong?" asked Cottle concerned, throwing his clipboard to the side and placing a hand on Kara's shoulder.

"I'm not sure," gasped Kara still sitting upright and gripping her stomach. "I just suddenly felt a sharp pain."

"Okay sit back gently," said Cottle supporting her back and helping her sit back into the pillows.

Kara felt the sharp pain again. She gasped louder this time and couldn't stop the panic that overcame her, "what is it? What's wrong doc?"

"Okay just relax for a moment it may be nothing, just a twinge."

They waited in agonising silence for 10 minutes. Thankfully the pain had not come back, and Kara found herself for the first time relieved to feel the fluttering that had been haunting her earlier. Her emotions were everywhere; she had never felt this sensation before, an overwhelming need to protect the life inside her.

"Feeling better?" asked Cottle.

"I think so. I can feel them moving about, that's got to be good, right?" asked Kara her face etched with concern.

"It's usually a good sign yes, but I really need to take a scan to know for sure."

Kara paused for a moment and then nodded her head reluctantly.

"And a physical exam," added Cottle.

Kara turned away and cursed before nodding her consent. Cottle disappeared for a moment to go and get the necessary equipment, leaving Kara alone with her thoughts. She was shocked by how much the notion of losing her babies had affected her and it was a feeling that frightened her.

Kara had always known that she should never have children; her own childhood had taught her that. Kara feared falling in love with them and being unable to let them go. They deserved better than her, they deserved a mother who wouldn't frak them up.

Cottle reappeared carrying the scanning equipment and then closed the curtain behind him giving them some privacy. He adjusted the bed, lowering it down to an almost horizontal position. Cottle then gently pulled back the blankets covering Kara and lifted her gown over the bump. He had performed numerous scans on the babies before, but this was the first time that Kara had been awake through the process. He seemed to sense her nervousness.

"The gel might be a little cold," he said reassuringly.

Kara nodded and then flinched slightly as Cottle proved his point. She turned her head away from the screen not wanting to see the images and closed her eyes, which didn't go unnoticed to Cottle.

"You'll regret it if you don't watch," he said. "I know what you're afraid of. I've been your doctor for nearly four years now and seen all your medical records."

Kara flinched and scrunched up her face suppressing the urge to scream at the good doctor. "You don't know anything about me."

"I know that despite what you think, I believe you will make as good a parent to these babies as anyone else would."

Kara really wanted to believe Cottle's words. She felt the kicking sensation as the babies moved around, penetrating her resolve. Kara suddenly thought of Lee. Deep in her soul Kara believed that he was still alive somewhere and that one day she would find him. She also knew that Lee would never forgive her if she gave up on their children. Kara took a deep breath and wiped away a tear that had escaped down her cheek and turned her head reluctantly towards the monitor.

Cottle smiled and placed the wand onto the gel spreading it around. After a few moments Kara saw an image appear on the screen, it was completely mesmerising.

Cottle pointed to the image, "okay there's one head and you can see the body there."

Kara was silent as Cottle moved the wand further to the side of her stomach, "and here's the second head. This one always seems to be hiding."

Kara reached over slightly and gently placed her hand on the screen, "are they okay?"

"Everything seems fine, do you want to hear the heartbeats?" asked Cottle.

Kara nodded her head and Cottle flipped a switch on the monitor. The steady rhythm of the heartbeats echoed in the curtained off area. Kara couldn't help the small smile that spread over her lips at the sound. Even though they were still only blobs on the screen they were beautiful and alive.

After a few minutes of watching the screen Cottle removed the wand and cleaned up the gel. He then lowered Kara's gown and raised the blanket. Kara made to sit up but Cottle raised his hand to stop her.

"Not so fast Captain, I need to examine you."

Kara muttered under her breath, she had hoped he'd forgotten about that, and lay back down on the bed. She felt the tiredness start to hit in again and wanted to just roll up and go to sleep but Cottle came over and draped some paper blankets over her legs.

"Do you need stirrups?" asked Cottle, only half serious.

"Frak off," replied Kara bluntly.

Kara lay as still as she could as Cottle examined her, attempting to forget about what he was doing. Reciting the Colonial Fleet manual in her head did not occupy her thoughts for long enough as she could only remember two pages worth. She would have to think of some small talk.

"Doc, I have a question," Kara said, flinching slightly.

"Shoot," said Cottle.

"Why does everyone keep calling me Captain, did I miss something or is my memory completely frakked?"

"You and Apollo were both given post-humus promotions to Captain and Major," replied Cottle as he removed his hands from underneath the blankets and removed his gloves. "Everything is healthy and normal."

Kara lowered her legs and then turned her head to the side. _Post-humus? _ The doctor's words suddenly brought her emotions crashing back. They had been declared dead. Memories of what had happened to them flashed through her mind, memories that she didn't want to recall.

**********************************************************************************

_Battlestar Pegasus_

They had lost seven vipers only three of which were remotely salvageable. Five pilots had managed to punch out, but one had been killed by cross-fire. The Pegasus had jumped about four times since the encounter and the evening was now drawing in. Despite the late hour Cain had ordered all pilots to convene in the Ready Room for their debriefing, another fleet requirement that Adama usually forwent, preferring to let his pilots unwind on their own.

Cain entered the Ready Room with a strong walk and her head held up high.

"Congratulations pilots," she said in an emphatic voice. "We managed to destroy all of the toasters with only minimal casualties. We're behind schedule now so I want all on-duty pilots to prepare for the next set of jumps."

Lee stared straight ahead as Cain spoke; her relentless determination to fight was admirable but also alarming to him. When Lee had first come aboard the Galactica from the Atlantia he had found it old fashioned and in serious need of decommissioning. But the longer he stayed there it had become his home, and the crew his family. The ship had been comforting and warm and Lee missed it. The Pegasus was cold and unwelcoming with everyone out for themselves. Lee also knew that over half of the crew would have been locked up and censured by the fleet had the cylons not attacked, including Cain.

"Captain Adama, am I boring you?" asked Cain. Lee looked up to see that the entire room was looking at him.

"No Sir, I'm just feeling the effects of punching out," he lied, though he did have a splitting headache and his neck was stiff.

"Well I suppose I'll let this one slide seen as you got the highest kill count today. It's a shame your viper was destroyed or the Chief of the deck would be printing on your kill count right now."

Lee was a little shocked, he had never had the highest kill count before, that glory had always gone to Kara. He hadn't even been counting. Lee hated Cain's moral boosting method of painting small raiders over their vipers. It was apparently meant to encourage everyone to get as many kills as possible and promote competition. But Lee only saw it as a way of individualising everyone, making them act only for themselves. Showboat had insisted, however that it was a popular method amongst the crew. Lee found himself wondering what would happen if the Pegasus ever met the Galactica. His father would be outranked and Cain's ideals would undoubtedly be forced on them all. Lee guessed that any merger of their crews would be a recipe for chaos and as much as he wanted to go home, he wouldn't wish his family to be exposed to Cain.

As the debriefing ended Lee walked out of the room, ignoring everyone else as they congratulated him and patted him on the back. He was devoid of emotion as he walked to the bunk room and lay down in his rack. Lee felt as if everyone was living around him but his own mind was far away. His body was moving but his soul was back on the Galactica or wherever Kara was.

Mercifully he was off-duty now and it was only 2000 hours, but Lee couldn't think of anything he wanted to do but sleep. He grabbed the pot of sleeping pills and downed two of them in order to induce a dreamless slumber.

His last thoughts before he fell asleep were of Kara, however he was not remembering the way she was when they had been captured. He remembered her from way back when Zak was still alive and they had been just good friends, or so Lee had kept telling himself. He remembered the holidays they had shared and the evening when they had woken up in adjacent prison cells. It had taken him two days to get over that hangover, but he had never been able to get over her.


	21. A Glimpse of the Future Part Four

Chapter 20

The hours following Blondie's escape bid were the longest of Caroline's life. The base was in a complete lockdown with extra marines sent in and General Howell had promptly removed Simms from active duty, no-one had seen him since.

Caroline had spent at least two hours explaining why she had not separated Blondie and Blue Eyes straight away. She had been honest in her response, stating that their time together was being recorded and studied but also that they deserved some time together.

They were now about to reconvene in order to discuss their prisoners' proposals. About an hour ago Blue Eyes had requested to speak to Ford stating that they were willing to co-operate and discuss their presence on the planet, but with a number of conditions attached...

******************************************************************************

_Six hours earlier_

Caroline watched on as Blondie and Blue Eyes embraced, they had missed each other. She felt the guilt eating away at her for separating them and for taking them away from what she guessed was their children. Blondie pulled her head away slightly then placed a soft kiss on Blue Eyes' lips before unhooking her arms from around his head. Blue Eyes smiled and removed his own cuffed hands; he then realigned a stray clump of Blondie's long hair and stroked it back into the correct place.

Even though Caroline had been studying this couple for a long time now, she still did not know a lot about them. Her instinct told her, however, that these two were very much in love and completely devoted to each other. It was lovely to see and something Caroline longed for herself.

Ford lightly placed his hand on Caroline's shoulder sending small chills down her spine. He too was looking down at the couple in front of them. After a few moments Blondie and Blue Eyes stood slowly and faced them. Caroline found herself wondering if they were trying to guess what sort of people they were, if they too were a couple. They all looked each other over, as the marines around them observed with their guns ready.

It was Ford who dared to speak first, "do you still need some ice for that eye?" he said facing Blondie and indicating his own eye.

Blondie looked puzzled for a moment until the words were translated, and then cleared her throat slightly before speaking, "yes, please."

Ford grabbed the ice pack and held it out towards her. Blondie looked briefly towards Blue Eyes and shrugged her shoulders before walking over and taking the pack from his hand. She held it to her eye and then hopped back up onto her bed. Blue Eyes walked over to stand by her side.

Caroline gestured towards Ford with her head, telling him to follow her out of the room, which he did after ordering the marines to keep a close guard on their guests.

"What do we do now?" asked Caroline when they were out of the room.

"I have to put them down in the basement for now," replied Ford and upon seeing the sad look take over Caroline's face added, "Look Carry, I'm sorry but I have no choice. The powers that be are going to go fucking nuts when they find out what happened, and believe me they will find out. They'll take Simms away and conduct a full investigation."

"Take him where?"

Ford didn't want to answer her question; he couldn't answer as it was classified. One thing was certain, Caroline would probably never see Simms again, and Simms would probably never see freedom again. He would be debriefed, censured and then taken overseas. Ford was more concerned about what was going to happen to Blondie, but at the moment he knew she was too much of an asset to ever be "disappeared."

Ford walked reluctantly back into the room that temporarily held Blondie and Blue Eyes and said to the marines, knowing full well that his words would be translated, "marines, put our guests into full leg chains and take them down to the basement cells immediately."

Blue Eyes spun around straight away as the translation came through and stood resolutely in front of his wife, guarding her. But Blondie reached her arm out.

"Lee," she said, and then added "don't."

Blue Eyes stood to the side and held out his hands as Blondie did the same. The marines walked up to them both with caution, with back-up marines standing close by with guns at the ready. They proceeded in placing leg chains on them both and then attached the leg chains to the handcuffs. This way everyone was assured that their guests would not be making another escape bid any time soon.

Caroline watched sadly as Blondie and Blue Eyes were taken out of the room and guided down the corridor by the marines. Blue Eyes was walking slightly ahead and seemed calm, Blondie however seem agitated but she kept looking straight ahead. Ford typed in a security code on the elevator doors, which opened moments later, revealing a large rectangular space. Blondie and Blue Eyes stepped inside and stood together with the marines flanking them. As the doors shut Caroline saw Blondie rest her head on Blue Eyes' shoulder. He in turn placed a soft kiss on top of her head.

Ford turned away from the closing elevator doors and looked long and hard at Caroline. His jaw ached and he could feel the bruising start to form from where Blue Eyes and Blondie had both hit him.

"Do you want some ice?" asked Caroline concerned.

"I'll be alright, I've had worse," replied Ford rubbing his jaw.

"There are cameras and microphones all over the basements cells. We can hear everything they say down there and I can guarantee they will talk."

Ford nodded in agreement, "I want to see if they talk to the Robot."

Caroline flinched slightly at the name Ford used, "I've renamed her as Jane."

"Why?" Ford asked confused.

"Because calling her a robot is rude, so she'll be Jane Doe until we find out her real name. And I want Blondie and Blue Eyes to be known as Kara and Lee."

"It's not up to you Carry."

Caroline shrugged, "I know, but that's the names I'll use for them."

"Come on," added Ford turning to walk down the corridor. "They'll be reaching the basement now and I'm sure you'll want to see it. I'm going to face the music from the powers that be."

Ford walked away leaving Caroline alone. She watched as he disappeared around the corner, limping slightly as he went. Caroline sighed and then made her way to one of the observation rooms. She sat down in front of the monitors showing the basement cells and pressed the record and audio buttons. Immediately the sounds coming from the cells came to life and she could hear the Robot walking around her cell. Caroline watched the screen as the elevator doors opened and Blondie and Blue Eyes were led out.

The Robot walked to glass partition and laughed, saying a few words to her comrades, which the computer quickly translated.

"I knew the alarms would have something to do with you, Starbuck."

"Starbuck?"thought Caroline, wasn't that a brand of coffee shop? She was even more confused when Blondie smiled and laughed in response.

"You know me," she said.

"Yeah, and I have her to thank for these," said Blue Eyes gesturing to his chains as he was led to a cell opposite the Robot, and Blondie was led into an adjacent cell. They both waited until the marines had removed their chains and walked away until they began to talk to each other.

"Are you okay Starbuck?" asked the Robot.

"Never better," Blondie replied, blinking her bruised eye. "How long have you been down here?"

"Since I woke up," replied the Robot shrugging.

Blondie smashed her hand against the glass in disgust and then walked away to the cot in the corner shouting out "frak" as she went. Caroline made a mental note that this must be their version of swearing.

"Are _you_ okay Athena?" asked Blue Eyes softly.

"I'm fine, really I am. This is not a situation I'm unfamiliar with remember."

Blue Eyes frowned and then backed away from the glass so he could lie on his bed. He looked up and saw the camera in the corner and then cursed loudly throwing himself off the bed and walking back over to the glass.

"What's wrong?" asked the Robot.

"They're watching us, and probably listening to us."

"They're always frakking watching us," said Blondie loudly from her bunk.

"We need to decide what to do," added Blue Eyes.

"Can't we just tell them the truth?" asked Blondie and then gestured to the Robot. "They already know about..."

"You're right; just give me some time to think about our terms."

"You're actually going to follow one of my suggestions?" asked Blondie looking a little shocked.

"You're crazy plans always have a habit of working, and I'm fresh out of by-the-book ideas."

Blue Eyes slid down the wall and leaned his head against the glass seemingly in deep thought. Caroline felt the guilt hit her, which seemed to be a common occurrence over the last few weeks. Deciding that she had seen enough, Caroline backed away from the screens knowing that the recorder would pick up the rest.

******************************************************************************

Ford had a headache, and he was undecided as to whether the cause was more to do with the numerous knocks he had received, or the three hour grilling from Howell. Ford knew he could definitely attribute the ringing in his ears to Howell. Fortunately, however, they had managed to conceal the majority of the incident from the higher powers, but they were still screaming for answers. Many countries were calling for the prisoners to be moved, including France, and the Netherlands, who were both claiming that the spacecraft had first appeared in their airspace and therefore owned the jurisdiction. Ford knew that if they didn't start coming up with some answers soon they would have no choice but to allow in outside influences. Then it would start getting messy.

The phone suddenly rang next to Ford and he answered it, with frustration and exhaustion marring his words. It was one of the marines who were on guard in the basement. Apparently Blue Eyes wanted to talk to him in order to discuss a deal. Ford wasted no time in heading towards the basement area but Blue Eyes had been brought up to him and was waiting in one of the consultation rooms. He was chained up again by his wrists and ankles but looked calm.

"I hear you want to discuss a deal?" asked Ford, waiting for the computer to translate and taking a seat in one of the vacant chairs. Two marines remained in the room for extra protection.

"We would like the opportunity to explain who we are," replied Blue Eyes in a neutral voice. "However, we require a certain number of guarantees."

"Go on."

"First, you will only speak to me and my wife as we are the ranking officers in our team."

Ford nodded, "that was going to be our original plan."

"Secondly, I want to see each member of my team. I want to know that they are okay. If any one of them has been hurt by you, we will not be telling you anything."

"I can assure you that no harm has been caused to any of you," said Ford and then quickly added, "well except for the unfortunate incident earlier."

Blue Eyes studied Ford for a moment as if he was attempting to ascertain if he was genuine or not. "Third condition, none of us are to be kept in the basement area anymore."

"That may be difficult; we only had five rooms made for you."

"Then I'll share with someone else, preferably my wife."

"That won't be possible, but we can move you into one of the other rooms," said Ford with a smile but Blue Eyes didn't seem pleased with him.

"After we have answered your questions I want my team to have some time together, even if it isn't in private."

"I'm sure that can be arranged with the suitable supervision."

"Okay then, it's a deal, for now" said Blue Eyes. He then held out his hand as much as he could. Ford hesitated a second as the weight of this momentous moment dawned on him. He was going to be the first person in the history of Earth to formally greet life from another world. He took Blue Eye's hand and firmly shook it.

"I still need to pass these conditions through my superiors first," added Ford. "But hopefully we can get things moving sooner rather than later."

*********************************************************************************

Caroline stood at the back of room and watched as the military leaders and ministers gathered around a large table and discussed the proposal set down by Blue Eyes. Ford was sitting at the head of the table doing the best he could to persuade them to agree. Caroline found herself frowning and folding her arms tightly as the discussion seemed to centre on the Robot, her dangerousness and the potential weapons technology that they could glean.

"I really believe that we should reconvene this meeting until after we've had the opportunity to speak to them," said Ford emphatically.

"I agree," said Howell.

"I want to know what they are capable of and their weapons technology," said one of the ministers straightening his suit jacket. "Not listen to their story."

Howell held up his hand, "I will talk to the male prisoner about those issues, if it is that important to you, and Ford will question the woman about what they are and where they came from."

"I suppose that would be acceptable," replied the minister.

Caroline rolled her eyes and slipped out of the room before she added something she really would not regret. She hated politics, science and space was her passion. Caroline entered the observation area so she could see inside the guest's rooms, even though two of them were currently empty. It was dinner time and Legs was busy digging into a bowl of tomato soup. He had still been irritable lately, so it was nice to see him during one of his calm moments.

Caroline sat in her comfy chair and leaned back watching her guests with a smile across her face. Mr Robot was lying on his back staring at the ceiling with the television tuned to one of the sports channels. Today he was watching a cricket test match, making Caroline laugh. "Each to their own," she thought. Brunette was curled up and doodling on some of the paper she had be given weeks before.

Watching her guests was almost therapeutic and Caroline didn't realise how tired she was until she had already drifted off, only to be awoken by Ford gently massaging her shoulders.

"Hey sleepyhead," he said with a smile.

Caroline looked up to see him behind her and then looked at her watch, "shit, I've been out for two hours."

"You haven't missed much, just a load of politic bullshit, but we had some success." Ford then gestured towards the guest's rooms and Caroline smiled as she saw Blondie being led into her room. After the marines had closed the door Blondie walked straight up to the glass and looked at her reflection, grimacing at the dark bruise and cut that marred her face. She then sat down and started slowly eating the soup that had been left just prior to her arrival.

"Where's Lee going to go?" asked Caroline but her question was answered as the door to Leg's room was opened. Legs looked confused as Blue Eyes entered and a marine threw down a small mattress onto the floor. Blue Eyes shrugged and lay down on the mattress. They appeared to be holding a discussion with each other, probably talking about what was going on and why they were now sharing a room. Caroline didn't have the heart to listen in, knowing that their exchange was being recorded anyway.

Lastly the Robot was brought into her new room. She seemed calm and very unthreatening as the marine guided her in and then left a bowl of soup. The Robot grabbed the bowl and sat down on the bed, taking her time to dig in.

Ford moved in front of Caroline and crossed his arms. "Howell will be questioning Blue Eyes tomorrow, after he gets his wish to see his comrades. I will be questioning Blondie."

Caroline nodded, "then I suggest we get out of here and get back early tomorrow."

Ford nodded, "fancy grabbing some dinner?"

"I think I might be persuaded, as long as it's of the fattening variety."

Ford laughed, "Burgers it is," he said and held out his arm. Caroline hooked her arm around his and they walked out of the room together knowing that it would be a long day tomorrow.

*******************************************************************************

Ford arrived back at the base early at 0830 hours. He had barely slept, tossing and turning as he thought over repeatedly what had happened that day. He had also dreamt briefly of a faraway place, beyond the stars, another world that he would make his home.

As Ford entered the observation room Caroline was already there going through some paperwork. She smiled at Ford as he entered.

"You ready?" she asked.

"As I'll ever be," replied Ford looking over towards the guests. They were still asleep except for Blondie and Blue Eyes who had been woken up by an early breakfast. Legs seemed completely unaware that anyone had entered the room despite the smell of the warm porridge oats. Blondie seemed unimpressed with the breakfast and preferred to play around with it using her spoon before finally taking a bite. After swallowing hard she looked at the bowl and poked it with her spoon, like it was a strange animal. She must have liked the gloop because she continued to take large mouthfuls in quick succession.

It was 1000 hours when Ford sat down in one of the interview rooms to wait for Blondie and Howell sat and waited in the adjacent room. The table and chairs were now securely nailed to the floor to ensure that Blondie couldn't make another escape bid. Ford knew that Caroline was going to be watching everything, which made him even more nervous that he would screw the whole thing up.

Caroline had not entered the observation room yet, however. Instead she watched, as she had done before, Blondie and Blue Eyes being brought out of their respective rooms. Only this time they were in chains, but this didn't stop them from seeing each other and quickly slipping each other a brief kiss before the marines nudged them down the corridor. As Blondie was led past, Caroline saw the woman turn to her and laugh slightly to herself, as if she was gloating her success from the day before. This irked Caroline somewhat, as she remembered how pathetic and weak she had been, to be so easily overpowered.

Blue Eyes was led to the observation room first so that he could see that his comrades were indeed in good health and Blondie was led straight to the interview rooms.

Ford looked up as Blondie entered and he warmly gestured to the chair. She sat down straight away without complaint and one of the guards stood in front of the door. Ford and Blondie both considered each other for a moment before Ford leaned forward with a key in his hand.

"Can I trust you not to face plant my head into the table?" he asked and waited for the translation.

Blondie did not answer but lifted her hands as far as she could.

"Can I?" asked Ford again.

"Yes," answered Blondie exasperated and opened her eyes wide.

"You can check that attitude because I could just as easily leave them on."

Blondie rolled her eyes as Ford unshackled the chains one by one until they were removed and then passed them to the marine, who promptly passed them out of the door.

"Travers," said Ford to the marine. "Can you get us some refreshments please, tea, soda and some food."

Travers exited the room briefly to relay the message before swiftly returning. Meanwhile Ford turned his attention back to Blondie.

"I'm sorry about your eye," he said.

"Why? I hit you first," replied Blondie.

"I still shouldn't have hit a woman, I'm sorry."

Blondie looked puzzled and rolled her eyes, "whatever, apology accepted. I'm sorry I pushed you through a window."

Ford suddenly had the sinking feeling that it would be a long day, if they carried on the way they were, so he decided to ignore this last jibe. This tactic seemed to work however and Blondie settled back into her chair and moments later a marine entered with some sodas.

"Sorry sir, hot water was considered to be too dangerous," said the marine.

Ford took the two cans and placed one in front of Blondie. She grabbed the can and eyed it suspiciously. Her finger plucked slightly at the ring-pull, seemingly surprised that it sprung back. Ford suppressed a chuckle, she had obviously never seen a drinks can before. He picked up his own can and opened it with ease. Blondie seemed to take note of the method and quickly opened the can.

She took her first gulp, "what the frak is this?"

"Lots of sugary goodness," replied Ford.

Blondie put the can down and turned up her nose, "how can you drink something so sweet?"

Ford laughed and turned to the guard, "I think we may need a diet soda." The marine seemed well prepared and extracted another can from his pocket. This went down a lot better with Blondie and the marine then stood to the side of the room with Travers.

It was now time to get down to the serious questions, which Blondie seemed to sense, giving Ford her complete attention.

Ford took a deep breath before he began with the basics, "can you give me your full name?"

Blondie sighed, "Major Kara Elina Thrace."

Ford took a note of this before he carried on, "and you are married to...?"

"Major Leland Joseph Adama, but he just goes by as Lee."

Ford didn't blame him, "how long have you been married?" he asked even though he had no idea if their "years" were the same length. Though he doubted there would be much variation, a planet able to sustain life would probably orbit the sun at approximately the same distance and amount of time. Ford berated himself for thinking too much, knowing that he was useless at science and probably wrong.

"Just over a year, depending on how long you kept us unconscious," replied Blondie crossing her arms.

Again Ford did not rise to the bait. Instead he pulled out a photograph from his pile of papers and placed it on the table. It was of Blondie and Blue Eyes holding the two children, who looked to be about one year in age. Blondie stared down at the picture and placed her hand gently over it. Her eyes seemed to glass over suddenly.

"Are these children yours and Lee's?" asked Ford.

"Yes," said Blondie weakly and then looked Ford in the eye. "And if you ever hurt or threaten to hurt them in any way, I'll do more than throw your head through this table."

Ford held up his hands, "I have absolutely no intent to cause you or your children any harm, I promise. Where are they?"

"They're safe."

"Here?" asked Ford laying down the satellite photograph of the large ship they had briefly seen.

Blondie seemed to recognise it and raised an eyebrow, "yes, we called that a Battlestar, it's a military ship."

Ford went to put away the pictures again but Blondie swiftly grabbed at the picture of her family.

"This is mine," she said harshly and then added in a softer tone, "I need to see them."

Ford nodded, unable to imagine what it was like to be kept apart from your offspring. "Where were you born?"

"Kallithia, a small island off the coast of Zografos, Picon."

Ford attempted to make a note of the location, but he was none the wiser. "What planet is that?"

"Picon," repeated Blondie.

"Okay, and what about the others, what are their names and where were they born?"

Blondie sighed and thought for a moment, "Lee is from Caprica City, Caprica."

"Is that on Picon too?" interrupted Ford.

"No, that's Caprica."

"So there is more than one planet where you're from?"

"Yes, we have twelve," replied Blondie as if it should be obvious.

Ford took a moment before he replied, "and the others?"

"I don't know where they're from."

"Fair enough, can you name them?" Ford asked laying out a number of pictures in front of her.

Blondie pointed to each in turn, "Margaret Edmondson, Karl Agathon, Hamish McCall and Sharon Agathon." Ford quickly noted everything down and then took the pictures away again.

"Are you all in the military?"

"Yes, the Colonial Fleet."

"And what is your role in this _Colonial Fleet_?"

"We're all pilots."

"So you fly a ship like the one you crashed in?" asked Ford, laying a picture of the impounded ship onto the table.

"No I fly a viper, like this," replied Blondie showing him the picture of her family with a craft in the background.

"That looks like a fighter jet."

"That's because it is. The other vessel is called a raptor."

Just at that moment a marine entered the room carrying two plates of food and placed them on the table. They contained a simple assortment of sandwiches. The marine then left the room closing the door behind him. Ford gestured to the food before taking a sandwich himself. Blondie hesitated but then took a sandwich and quickly devoured it, followed by a swig of soda.

After a minute Ford spoke again, "Why are you here?"

"We crashed here and then you locked us up."

This time Ford rose to the bait, "yes we did, and just so you know, there's no way of escaping from here no matter how much you try. We're within a couple of metres worth of thick concrete with only one exit. If by some miracle you did manage to escape, there are another two buildings surrounding this one and then a thirty foot wall. So once again why are you here?"

Blondie didn't seem impressed, "I told you, we crashed. I don't even know how we got here. I was plotting an emergency jump and it brought us here. Luckily I managed to send a transmitted copy to the Battlestar just before we jumped."

Ford resisted the urge to ask her all about the jump technology knowing that Howell was gathering this information. He looked at Blondie intently, his years of experience telling him that this woman was hiding a lot of secrets, which he desperately wanted to know. Ford knew that these secrets held the truth behind why they were here. He placed the photograph of the Robot back in front of her.

"Tell me about this woman."

"You tell me," replied Blondie with a smile.

Ford didn't respond, instead he sat back in his chair and folded his arms, waiting for a response. Blondie took a swig of her soda and then also sat back in her chair. After a few moments and a sigh, she started to talk and her words would forever be ingrained in Ford's mind.

"She's a member of our team, remember that," began Blondie. "She's what we call a cylon." Ford did not interrupt or note anything down instead giving his undivided attention. "We created machines in order to make life easier, but they didn't look like her then, they looked more like a bunch of frakking toasters. One day they rebelled against their masters and started a war that finally ended when the cylons signed an armistice. We heard nothing from them for forty years. The frakkers were still out there though, evolving and creating what you have in front of you, humanoid models that could perfectly infiltrate our society in secret. One day about four years ago they reappeared from their seclusion..."

Ford felt light headed like time was slowing down as Blondie continued.

"...and they wiped us out. All twelve planets, billions of lives destroyed in less than a day."

Blondie paused and turned her head away, obviously emotional. Ford did not know what to say, there were no words of comfort he could offer for the extermination of your entire civilisation. Finally he asked in a weak voice, "how?"

"They infiltrated our entire defence mainframe and launched all of our weapons against us. Whenever we tried to fight back they just switched off our Battlestars like they were turning out a light, we were defenceless," Blondie's said, her voice getting harsher with each word.

"But you survived?"

"Yes, I was on board the Battlestar Galactica, an older model to the picture you have there. They are the only two Battlestars to survive the attacks. The Galactica was due for decommissioning and none of her systems were networked so the cylons couldn't infiltrate her. But the toasters managed to switch off and destroy my entire squadron of vipers, we lost about 100 people that day," again Blondie had to pause for a moment and take a deep breath.

Meanwhile Caroline was watching from the other side of the glass and tears had already fallen down her cheeks. The room was completely silent as everyone took in what Blondie was telling them.

"How did your viper survive?" asked Ford.

"It didn't, but I wasn't the one flying it because I was sitting in the brig for striking a superior officer." Ford nodded, unsurprised. "I went out in the second wave, in an older viper that the cylons couldn't affect. We managed to get away and gather survivors then we jumped away," said Blondie with a shrug. "But there were only about 50,000 of us left."

"So you were running away when you came across us?" asked Ford, devastated that so few were alive.

"We were trying to survive, we were looking for you."

"What? You knew about us?" asked Ford incredulously.

Blondie shrugged, "our scriptures speak of a planet called Earth." Ford was silent so she continued. "According to our scriptures we originated from another planet called Kobol, one day we decided to leave and form the Twelve Colonies. The Scriptures say that one group broke away from their brothers and formed a thirteenth colony, here." Ford seemed dumbstruck. "You mean that you've never heard of the Sacred Scrolls or Pythia?"

"No I haven't."

Blondie seemed to look worried for a moment, like she was realising for the first time that her whole belief system had been turned upside down. After a moment she seemed to collect herself back together, "well, then you need to know."

"Know what?"

"That the cylons know about our scriptures."

"What do you mean?" asked Ford, unsure that he wanted to find out the answer.

"Listen, the cylons were following us, trying to wipe the rest of us out, but then they changed their plan. They want to make Earth their new home and they'll stop at nothing until they find you."


	22. Atlantia

Chapter 21

_Battlestar Pegasus_

Two days ago the Pegasus, running a little behind schedule, reached the outer Colony of Virgon. It was a waste-land, completely destroyed with very little resembling civilisation, it was as if one had never existed. Lee had remembered how Kara had described Caprica; there were still buildings with parts of the cities still intact, especially in Delphi. She had called it a ghost town. The cylons seemed to have no interest in making Virgon their home, leaving her in complete devastation. A memorial service led by Admiral Cain had been held in memory of the dead.

Cain looked up at her dradis consol, it was eerily quiet. They had not come across the cylons for about three weeks, when two pilots had been killed. She had expected to find more cylons as they neared the Colonies but there was nothing.

"Sir, I'm getting a transponder signal," said Hoshi, suddenly turning around from his consol. "It's colonial."

"From the surface?" asked Cain strongly.

"No sir, I'm trying to trace the signal, it's very weak at the moment. Give me a few minutes."

Cain nodded and then turned her attention to Lee who had been sharing his latest report regarding Virgon. Apparently the radiation levels were considered too high to even attempt a mission to the surface.

"Sir, the signal is coming from one of Virgon's moons," said Hoshi after a few minutes of frantic searching.

Cain turned to Lee, "take two raptors down to the co-ordinates and take a look," she ordered and then added. "I want you to accompany them too, with a contingent of pilots in flightsuits."

"Flightsuits sir?" asked Lee confused.

"A transponder signal implies that there may be wreckage down there and something to salvage."

"Yes sir," replied Lee saluting and walked quickly away towards to the hangar deck. He had no idea what Cain expected to "salvage" from an unknown Colonial vessel that must have been destroyed at least over a year ago. Lee felt frustrated, he hated the way Cain ran her ship, not that he could do anything about it, and missed his father's command. Even though Lee had disagreed on many occasions with his dad's decisions they usually contained a morsel of sense.

After many hours preparation the two raptors finally took off from the Pegasus and made their way towards the surface of the nearest moon. Hoshi had given them the co-ordinates to follow. Lee sat in the front of the leading raptor with Taylor in the pilot's seat. Showboat was leaning on the back of Lee's chair but there was hardly a word spoken between them. There were five people to each raptor and they were all clad in their flightsuits, ready to take a little spacewalk if necessary.

"Raptor one do you have a visual yet?" asked Cain over the comm.

"No sir," replied Taylor just as they saw a shadow shifting in the distance and a large object came into view. "Hold on, we have something, it's large."

"I want a better description then that Captain," replied Cain clearly annoyed.

"Oh my gods," added Lee as they finally saw what was in front of them. It was a Battlestar, but it only vaguely resembled one now. She had clearly succumbed to the cylons and gone down hard onto the surface of the moon. Most of it was completely destroyed but there were some parts that seemed reasonably intact.

"Report Captain," ordered Cain in a voice that meant she expected an answer.

"It is a Battlestar sir, in a very poor shape." said Lee, still dumbfounded. "We're flying alongside now to see if we can identify her."

As the raptor slowly drew alongside the only remaining solid part of the ship, they all looked in wonder to see if they could make out a name. Fortunately the outer shielding, on the side just above where the landing pods should be, they could make out a name.

A T L A N T I A

"It's the Atlantia sir," said Lee. He looked on in wonder upon its desolate state, a sorry end for the flagship of the Colonial fleet. It had been Lee's ship, which he had left only days before the cylons attacked. This should have been his destiny, and if Lee was anyone else's son he would be dead too in this makeshift cemetery. Lee felt a sudden warmness towards his father and said a silent thank you to him, wherever he was.

"I want the ship stripped of any materials you can salvage," ordered Cain. "I'm sending another two raptors down to you now."

Lee bit his lip in order to stop himself from shouting back at her lack of respect. It was also very unlikely that they would find much, but if they were lucky there would be some ammunition available.

"I'm going to land us near that gaping hole there," said Taylor pointing to an area where the hull had been torn apart.

"Wasn't this your ship Apollo?" asked Showboat.

"Yeah it was," replied Lee, still in shock at the sad sight in front of him. Kara was right; nothing could really prepare you for seeing the ghost towns that were left behind. The fleet had jumped away, they had mourned the dead but no-one could imagine what had happened to everything they left behind.

The raptor landed heavily, causing Showboat to nearly fall over.

"Ready for a little spacewalk Apollo," she laughed, knowing full well that this was Lee's weak spot. Back in basic flight Lee had nearly vomited into his helmet when they had done zero gravity training.

Lee swallowed, "I don't think I'll ever be ready, spacewalks always make me sick to my stomach."

"At least the surface has some semblance of a gravitational pull."

"That's not very comforting," replied Lee as he positioned himself by the hatch. "Okay everybody; move out in pairs and we'll meet back here in fifty."

Everyone nodded their assent and then the hatch opened up exposing them to the moon's surface. The raptor's occupants exited, leaving only Taylor behind, and traversed towards the inside of the fallen ship. The other raptors were going to search for the missile shafts to see if any of the nukes were still salvageable.

Lee was felt the nausea hit his stomach first but he attempted to ignore as he entered the damned ship.

**********************************************************************************

_Battlestar Galactica_

Kara could have sworn that her stomach was expanding at least an inch day by day, and her babies seemed intent on using her kidneys as target practice. She had taken to referring to them, very unimaginatively, as baby one and baby two. Cottle had offered to tell her the sexes but Kara had chosen to leave that part as a surprise.

Cottle had also taken some time to explain what may have caused her pregnancy, despite the obvious week of rampant frakking. Kara had been taking a contraceptive patch that ought to have protected her from conceiving, but Cottle hypothesised that when she had been injured on Caprica some of the drugs they had administered could have altered its effectiveness. Also the cylons may have given her drugs to purposefully achieve this aim, considering their intentions towards her.

Kara had felt that yet again the cylons had managed to blindside her, and it stung her hard.

The weeks were starting to blur together and Kara was bored out of her mind, the highlight of her week was when Cottle had finally let her get out of bed to use the bathroom. Karl was now sitting with her, like he did most days, but there was no news in the fleet and Kara was getting restless.

"Helo, I'm frakking bored, you've got to get me out of here," she said and thumped her head down into her pillows.

"The doc says you've only got to stay in here another few days, so quit whining," replied Karl, barely looking up from the piece of paper he was reading.

"I would've busted out of here a week ago if Cottle hadn't stationed two marines to guard me."

Helo didn't respond, instead he carried on reading with a small smirk across his face. Irritated, Kara reached over and snatched the paper from his hands.

"Hey," exclaimed Karl snatching it back.

"What the frak is that anyway?"

"Baltar's election manifesto."

"Eurgh, even I'm not bored enough to read that."

"Okay, so what _would_ keep you entertained?" asked Karl.

"Getting out of this bed and back into my viper."

"I doubt you would fit, Kara, but it would be entertaining."

"Frak you Helo, and while you're at it, can you please explain why I keep having the urge to read trashy romance novels?"

Karl burst out laughing and couldn't stop.

"What?!" asked Kara exasperatedly.

Karl managed to contain himself before confessing, "I may have read some classic romance novels to you, in order to bribe you into waking up."

Kara grabbed one of her pillows and threw it at Karl's head as he began laughing again, but she soon found herself laughing along with him until her sides hurt. The sudden kick to her stomach brought Kara back to reality, however, and she found herself stroking the bump tenderly.

"Frak," she said to herself and then turned to Karl. "Bet you never thought we would end up like this huh?"

Karl chuckled, "What, sitting here in lifestation together, after surviving the end of the worlds, with you pregnant with twins conceived from an affair with the CAG, and me having fallen in love with a machine? Nope, can't say I saw this moment coming."

Kara leaned back and closed her eyes. Karl was right, they had known each other for so long now and neither could have predicted that their lives would have turned out this way.

Kara groaned and then turned her head to Karl, "what the frak am I going to do?"

"Give birth?"

"Oh Gods, I hadn't even thought about that part," replied Kara feeling that she was developing a headache.

"Are you going to tell the old man?"

"Hey Helo can you do me a favour?" asked Kara, blatantly ignoring Karl's question.

"Anything you know that."

"I need to find some clothes if I want to get out of here. I don't think anything I own will fit."

Karl laughed, "I'll see what I can find in the storage rooms."

"Helo?" asked Kara after a few moments. "What _am_ I going to do about the old man?"

"You have to tell him, they're his grandchildren you're carrying."

"I'm well aware of that," replied Kara, stroking the side of her bump. The frequent fluttering and kicks had now become a comforting companion to her, even if it also scared the frak out of her at the same time. "He hasn't even come to see me."

"Really?"

"Nope, he did send Tigh in here once though, to order me to write a report on what had happened."

"Without seeing you first?" asked Karl, shocked at Adama's behaviour. "Can you even write with that cast on?"

"I used my left hand," replied Kara to which Karl nodded, remembering that she was ambidextrous. Kara looked away for moment, wondering if Adama blamed her for Lee's disappearance. She had already been responsible for the death of one of his sons, and now she had played a part in his eldest child's purported death. How could Kara approach Adama now and tell him that she had been having passionate sexual encounters with the brother of his dead son? And that she had managed to get herself knocked up? Kara decided that for the time being it would be best to keep her mouth firmly shut on the subject.

"You okay Starbuck?" asked Karl, pulling Kara out of her private reverie.

"Yeah," she replied and then swung her legs off the side of the bed standing up a little too quickly, which nearly made her topple forwards.

"Whoa, steady there," said Karl using his arms to stop Kara from falling over.

"Sorry, still not used to the new weight distribution." Even though Kara was noticeably pregnant and had also grown in the chest area, she was still underweight over the rest of her body because of what the cylons had done.

"You need to rest, where are you going?"

Kara rolled her eyes, "I need to pee."

"Oh," replied Karl and held out his arm to support her as they walked to the small bathroom leading off from the lifestation.

Cottle watched them as he carried out his rounds and shook his head slightly; he really would miss Kara when she leaves.

********************************************************************************

_Battlestar Pegasus – Virgon moon_

Lee felt as if he was entering a morgue as he stepped through the gaping hole in the hull. He knew no-one would be alive but that didn't prepare him for the cold and dead feeling that emanated from the ship. Lee's time aboard the Atlantia was not a happy one, and the days before he left for the Galactica had been spent taking out all of his anger on a punch bag. He had not spoken to his father for two years and didn't want to either, but he had been looking forward to seeing Kara, if not a little anxious.

The spacewalkers each took out their torches as they entered the Atlantia in order to provide some illumination. The corridors were at an angle from the crash so they had to walk along what used to be the walls. There were many passageways that were blocked from the destruction, but Lee guided Showboat down what he thought was the route to the CIC as the other pilots walked towards the arms lockers.

Everything was frozen in place but Lee and Showboat finally found the hatchway through to the CIC. It was sealed and indicated that there was no breathable air behind, so Lee executed the emergency hatch release and forced the door open. The CIC looked as if it had been protected from the explosion that had disabled the ship and sent it careening into the moon. The crew would have probably been still alive right until the last moment when the containment failed, suffocating all those inside. Lee suppressed the urge to vomit as he saw the number of bodies perfectly preserved by the sub-zero temperatures.

It was difficult to tell who the bodies once belonged to and Lee did not attempt to identify them. He knew that Admiral Nagala would be in the room somewhere, but Lee had no desire to see him again. The pilots each looked around the CIC briefly but found nothing of note except for the dead. None of the computers were still working so they could not find out what had happened in the Atlantia's final moments.

Lee decided to take a different route out by heading down towards the hangar deck, but this meant going past the living quarters. Lee couldn't help the morbid curiosity come over him as he recognised the senior officer's bunk room, it had survived the crash.

"Just give me a moment," he said to Showboat.

"This you're old room?"

"Yeah it is," replied Lee as he checked the hatch, containment had not been completely lost in the room. "Hang on there could still be breathable air in there."

"But no-one could survive in there for over a year," said Showboat.

Lee nodded, she was right; there was no hope of anyone surviving in there. If someone had been on the other side, they would have used up all the breathable air a long time ago. Lee carefully opened the hatch and exposed the stagnant room. There was no-one inside, everyone must have been on full alert and fulfilling their jobs around the ship.

As Lee entered the room and shone his torch around, he was confronted with flashes of his past. There was the bunk where he had pined day after day for Kara. Two years of angst was too much for one man, but no matter how much he tried, Lee had thought about her at least every day, even if it was only for a glancing moment. Small things would set him off usually, a blonde jogging down the corridor, someone smiling like she did or someone back-chatting the CAG.

Lee had never stopped thinking about Kara and he probably never would. He had dreamt so many times of her in that rack, forcing him to make unscheduled trips to the head.

"You okay Apollo?" asked Showboat shining her torch at Lee's helmet. He was staring down intently at the bunk.

"Yeah," said Lee looking away. "Just a lot of memories."

"Good or bad?"

"A bit of both," replied Lee truthfully. He had hated the Atlantia from the first moment he stepped on board. He had been full of anger and resentment, but most of all guilt. It was only a year ago that Lee had found out about Kara's involvement in Zak's death, but he had never felt anger towards her, mainly because of his own guilt. What Kara had done, was because she was in love with him and cared more about his happiness. Lee was the man who was in love with his brother's fiancé and, to make matters worse, had let said brother find out how he felt.

"Hey Apollo we're at forty minutes, we'd better head back," said Showboat.

Lee pulled himself away from looking at the rack, but before he left had to pull open his locker. He was shocked to see that everything had been preserved, pretty much perfectly. He only left a couple of items behind, and had taken everything he cared about to the Galactica. Lee shut the locker again and headed out of the door without looking back again.

Where the hangar deck should have been was nothing but wreckage. It must have taken the brunt of the cylon's attack and been completely destroyed. There was another gaping hole where the starboard landing pod should have been. Lee and Showboat exited the dead ship and made their way briskly towards the awaiting raptor.

******************************************************************************

It was 1900 hours when Lee was called to Cain's quarters. Back on the Galactica he had reported daily to Tigh, but on the Pegasus Cain insisted on dealing with everything herself. Lee couldn't decide which was the lesser of two evils, at least on the Pegasus he didn't have to deal with Tigh's drooling wife every time he delivered a report, but at least on the Galactica he never feared that he was going to be flushed out of an airlock if he said the wrong thing.

"Would you like a drink?" asked Cain.

"Ah, no thank you sir," replied Lee, the thought of being alone with Cain and alcohol did not appeal to him unsurprisingly.

"You're not on duty Captain," said Cain passing him a glass of the only alcohol left on the ship. Lee suppressed the urge not to sigh and took the glass taking a small swig. He remembered the last time he had drunk alcohol, the week before the cylons had taken him. He had been with Kara, Helo and Duck in the rec room playing triad. Kara had turned in early using bad luck as an excuse to head for her rack. What the others had not seen, was Kara's hand reaching briefly under the table to unzip Lee's slacks. After five minutes and one round later, Lee stated that he had some work to do and walked out of the room, trying to hide the front of his slacks. Kara was waiting for him in their bunk room and they had spent the rest of the night together, secretly in her rack.

"How are you settling in?" asked Cain, breaking through Lee's reverie.

"Fine, sir."

"Good, because we have a lot of work ahead of us and no idea how many cylons are out there."

"The crew is ready for whatever the toasters can throw at us," said Lee, but he didn't really believe what he was saying.

"I want as many of the Colonies searched for resources as possible. We managed to salvage four warheads from the Atlantia and there must be more, especially on Picon and Caprica. I also want any able-bodied people found to be brought on board."

"Able-bodied?" asked Lee.

"This isn't a nursery Captain, this is a Battlestar, a vessel for war and I plan to keep it that way," Cain didn't allow Lee to intervene before continuing. "I want a team to search for a Tylium refinery ship and any Tylium deposits, have your plans drawn up by tomorrow morning."

Tomorrow morning? Cain seemed not to believe in sleep sometimes. Lee took a large gulp of his ambrosia. "I guess I should get started then," he said.

"Dismissed Captain," said Cain sharply.

Lee saluted and then finished off the glass of ambrosia placing it down on Cain's desk before turning and walking away. He headed for the Ready room and sat down at the front resting his feet on the bench-desk in front. Just like during his time on the Atlantia, Lee thought randomly of Kara. The Ready room had been one of his favourite places for seeing her, sitting seductively at the front, forever distracting. Lee leaned back, no longer suppressing his thoughts and let his mind focus on the passionate nights they had spent together before the cylons had dragged them into a nightmare.

********************************************************************************

_Battlestar Galactica_

Karl berated himself, he hadn't been down to see Sharon for three days now as his attentions were focused on Kara. He knew that Sharon would not be pleased, and she did not disappoint. There was also an air of sadness surrounding her. Time was not healing the pain of losing her child.

Sharon was angry and devastated, but she kept her tone neutral, knowing that Karl was also still hurting, "hey, where have you been?"

"Hi Sharon," said Karl holding hand up to the glass partition. "I'm sorry it's been three days but I've been spending a lot of time in lifestation." Sharon nodded but said nothing. "Starbuck's due out of lifestation this week and I've been helping her move about."

"Okay," said Sharon without much conviction.

"How are you?" asked Karl.

"As well as I could be"

"I should have been here, I'm sorry," apologised Karl.

"As you said, Starbuck needed you, it's okay," said Sharon. She had never understood the relationship between those two. Karl had told her that they were just friends and had first met during basic flight, beyond that he had not been explicit. Sharon had once asked him if they had ever been more than just friends, but Karl had hastily changed the subject, which Sharon took to be an affirmation.

"Look, there are a few things that I haven't told you about Starbuck, which is why I've been with her a lot."

"Oh?"

"She's pregnant."

Sharon looked visibly shocked and then a little saddened, "Starbuck?"

"Yeah, with twins. She's taken it a bit hard," Karl looked round to see if the guard was listening. "Especially considering who the father is."

Sharon seemed to sense straight away who is was that Karl was referring to, "When she gets out can I see her?"

"Of course, I'll ask her to come and see you."

The marine indicated that they only had two minutes left, so Karl spent it talking about his future with Sharon, or what he hoped would be their future together.

*********************************************************************************

Kara could smell the freedom when she had awoken that morning. Cottle was finally cutting her loose from the lifestation and she could sleep in a bunk again. Of course the good doctor had given her strict instructions not to over exert herself until she was ready, but Kara couldn't wait to get back on duty.

She had enjoyed a long shower courtesy of the private head in the lifestation, but Kara knew she would soon be back to communal living. She could already imagine the stares from the other officers, not only at her protruding belly but at the scarring that now laced her back. Cottle had done a good job minimising the damage so that there were only faint lines across her back, but it was noticeable enough to be a constant reminder of what she had been through, and what Lee was possibly still going through. Kara absently rubbed her stomach as she thought about Lee, wondering if he would ever get to see his children, and also wondering how the frak she would tell him about them.

Kara drew up her now shoulder length hair into a ponytail and packed away the few items she had around her. In the last few days she had managed to finish the romance novel Karl had begun, not that she would admit it to anyone. It was beautifully written and perfectly encompassed the secret love and passion that the main characters had for one another, without each other or themselves truly knowing about their feelings.

At last Karl arrived in the lifestation carrying a box under his arm.

"That'd better be some clothes," said Kara. "I'm not going out in this frakking gown." For four weeks Kara had been wearing the lifestation gowns and a pair of shorts. Unlike when she had injured her knee, she had not been able to find any tanks that fit.

"Do you know how long it took me to find all this stuff?" asked Karl placing the box down on the bed and pulling out a blue uniform jacket. "I had no idea they actually made these in maternity sizes, you can't have been the first officer to find yourself in this predicament."

Kara pushed Karl's arm playfully, "watch it Lieutenant."

"So Adama has let you keep Captain has he?"

"I guess so; Tigh came in briefly yesterday to tell me that I'm now the CAG and dumped a load of paperwork on me."

"Nice of him to tell me," replied Karl.

"Sorry, guess there's nothing else for me do."

"You're the ranking pilot, so you should be the CAG. I could never be bothered with all of the paperwork anyway."

Kara grabbed at the jacket Karl still held in his arms, it was big but Kara suspected that she would outgrow it in a few weeks time.

"You're lucky I found that, it was the only one at the bottom of the last box. I couldn't find any other maternity stuff so you'll have to make do with these larger sizes."

"Thank you," said Kara, placing the jacket back in the box and carrying it towards the bathroom, closing the door behind her. She looked long and hard in the mirror above the sink and removed the hospital gown. Luckily Ishay had gone and found her a larger cropped top a few weeks ago because she doubted Karl would have thought about that.

Kara turned to the side and looked at her stomach, "frak," she cursed. After rifling through the box she found a set of large tanks and pulled them over her head, they fit well. Pulling on the fatigues was slightly more difficult as it was hard to bend, so she had to sit down on the toilet in order to pull them up. They just fit, if she wore them underneath the bump, but it meant that her tanks were riding high, leaving a slight gap. Lastly Kara grabbed a large shirt, which just stretched enough so she could do up the buttons.

Kara paused for a moment before exiting the bathroom and cursed again, even getting dressed had worn her out. She took a few deep breaths and then exited the room.

"You look... big," teased Karl.

"Frak you, Helo."

"You gonna teach your kids that word," laughed Karl.

"Just help me with my boots will you?"

Kara sat down on the bed and pulled on her boots with Karl's help. Meanwhile Cottle came over, extinguishing his cigarette before he reached them. "Remember to take it easy Captain, if you feel tired then go and lay down."

"Yes doc," said Kara, annoyed that this was the fifth time Cottle had given her this speech. "And I'll come and see you every week for a check-up."

"The Commander sent through another order for you," said Cottle. "He wants you to talk to a counsellor, unfortunately there doesn't appear to be many psychiatrists in the fleet, so he's sending someone from the Colonial Clergy."

"Great," said Kara sarcastically, "just what I need." Adama was starting to really annoy her, why had he still not been to see her?

"You ready?" asked Karl.

For a moment Kara wasn't sure, the lifestation had been a kind of sanctuary for her during the past four weeks, harbouring her from the stares and gossip of the ship. "Yeah, let's go," said Kara eventually as she slid off the bed and flung her bag over her shoulder, which Karl swiftly took from her. "I'm not an invalid Helo."

"You're carrying enough at the moment," said Karl.

Kara didn't respond as she was too intent on leaving lifestation. The stares started instantly as they walked down the corridors towards the senior officer's bunk room. Kara was not a person who had ever cared what people thought of her, but her current hormonal state was leaving her a lot more vulnerable. She bit down on her lip to suppress the urge to tell everyone to go frak themselves.

"Back when you were gone, the old man ordered me to your empty your lockers and put them into storage. He wouldn't allow anyone to take anything," said Karl as they entered the bunk room. "We chucked someone back out to the junior officer's quarters so you could have your old rack."

"Thanks," said Kara, grabbing her bag from Karl and throwing it in her bunk.

The sound of laughter reached the room before they could see the source, but Kara knew from the sound that it was Kat and Hotdog. Two people who she really did not want to see yet. Their laughs stopped as soon as they entered the room and stood in the doorway staring at her.

"Is there a problem Lieutenants?" asked Kara opening her locker so she could hide partially behind it.

"No sir," said Kat. "I just came to get the rest of my things."

Kara watched as Kat briskly walked up to the table, grabbed a box and stormed out again.

"You chucked Kat out?" asked Kara, after Kat had gone.

"Yep," said Helo with a smile. "She had insisted in taking your bunk, so it's her own fault really."

Kara laughed, "I owe you one, the last thing I needed was Kat rubbing my nose in the fact that I won't be flying anytime soon."

"Erm sir, I'm still in the room," said Hotdog, holding up his hand in a lame attempt at protecting his friend.

"Then leave," replied Kara sharply.

Hotdog didn't need asking twice and quickly exited.

"I still have to put up with him though."

"What's wrong with Hotdog?" asked Karl.

Kara sighed, "Nothing, look I just can't deal with anyone at the moment okay."

Kara opened up her box and started emptying the contents into her locker. She didn't have many personal items but the ones she did have were important to her, from her father's music to the handful of pictures kept in a box. She wondered if her civilian clothes would ever fit her again. It didn't take Kara long to empty the contents of her box into the locker, as Karl had already hung up her old uniform and placed her new helmet on the top shelf. She had lost her flightsuit to the cylons.

Kara noticed that there was one last item in the box and picked it up, she gasped when she saw what it was and then seemed to be frozen to the spot. It was the picture of her standing with Zak and Lee.

Karl was concerned as he saw the colour suddenly drain from Kara's face and she slumped down into the nearest chair. "Starbuck? What's wrong?"

Kara held out the picture and Karl took it, seeing immediately why she was upset. Karl walked over and closed the hatch door before taking a seat in front of Kara and took one of her hands in his, "are you okay?"

"No, I'm not," replied Kara and took her hand back to wipe away a stray tear.

"It was more than just frakking for you two, wasn't it?" asked Karl, knowing that he was crossing a line.

Kara stood up and walked to her locker, suddenly feeling a sharp kick in her stomach, "frak," she cursed and then slammed the door closed before leaning back against it.

"Kara?"

"This is so frakked up," said Kara stroking her belly, hoping that she could calm them down. After a moment she spoke again, "do you know what the last thing I told him was, before the cylons dragged him away?"

"What?" asked Karl softly.

"I told him that I loved him," replied Kara, smiling but looking up to the ceiling with tears in her eyes. "I didn't get to hear his response."

"Frak," whispered Karl. He knew what Lee felt for Kara, but now wasn't the time to state what she obviously must know already. Instead he stood up and pulled her into a hug. Kara felt the hormones kicking in again and couldn't hold back her emotions. Over Karl's shoulder she could see the picture lying on the table, cruelly the side showing Lee was facing directly at her.

Kara closed her eyes in the vain attempt at stopping the images and tears from coming.


	23. Nothing But the Rain

Chapter 22

_Kara could distinctly feel something hardening against her thigh. She was naked on top of a half-naked Lee, and he was having a full on erection directly beneath her. Kara wished she could think of something witty to say, but could only come out with "oh."_

_Lee stared at her for what felt like an eternity before he pushed up his arms and lifted her upwards. The next moment was a scurry of towels as Kara scrambled to her feet. She turned swiftly around to hide the blush that took over her face. _

_Lee had wanted her._

_The more Kara willed herself to stay turned away, the more she desired to turn to him and satisfy his want. But Kara knew if she looked into Lee's eyes she would lose herself completely. So she spun herself around and immediately planted her lips to his. Her plan failed, she had lost herself to him already. As their kisses softened and their tongues gently caressed, Kara felt more and more relaxed. _

_This is what they were meant to do._

_Everything felt right, every touch, every sensation, it was perfect. The more they touched the more Kara wanted, needed. The coldness of the hatch pressing suddenly into her back pulled Kara out of her dream, and those blue eyes bored their way to her soul. This time the kisses were gentler, laced with less desperation. Kara wanted to feel every sensation, remember each stroke._

_Kara had no idea where this moment was leading, but every sensation in her body told her it was right. _

The tightness in her stomach awoke Kara suddenly. For the second time that night she needed to haul ass to the head. Kara sighed and threw her legs over the side of her rack. Sitting up was harder and she had to grab hold of the ladder leading to the top bunk, in order to lift herself up to a sitting position.

Kara cursed; she had been having a great dream about the first night she had spent with Lee. Her growing belly was the reminder of where that moment was leading. Kara used the ladder again to haul herself to her feet and felt her way out of the dark room. She ignored the snide remark from one of her room mates as the opening hatch allowed light to enter the room.

It was Kara's first night out of lifestation and she was absolutely exhausted. The first half of her day had been spent sitting in the bunk room catching up with paperwork. The second half of the day had been spent in her rack, hiding out from the other pilots. They all knew she was out of lifestation, but no-one knew what to say, or not to say.

Once Kara had made it back to her rack from the head she couldn't get back to sleep, so she just lay there trying to work out what she was going to do, which was enough to give her a massive headache.

At 0700 hours, like clockwork, the occupants of the bunk room began to wake up. Kara heard the crashing sounds as lockers opened and the occasional large yawn. It was now or never, Kara threw open her curtain. Most of the occupants in the room were too busy to notice one curtain opening so they ignored her at first. It wasn't until Kara stood up that all eyes suddenly turned towards her stomach. Kara rolled her eyes as she opened her locker and pulled out her wash kit and towel.

"What?!" she exclaimed towards Hotdog, who was standing at his locker and just staring at her intently.

"Um, nothing," said Hotdog looking guilty and turning back to his locker.

Kara cursed under her breath and walked out of the room with her wash kit. The walk to the officers' head and her subsequent shower was no different, and she had to bite her lip to stop herself from shouting out at them all. The warm shower was soothing and for a moment Kara forgot about all her troubles. Unfortunately this feeling didn't last when she had to leave the sanctity of the cubicle. None of her shipmates had changed at all since she had been gone. Everyone still walked around the head half naked without a care in the world. The same went for the bunk room, the usual pilot banter was still being called across the room and Hotdog was still slapping people with his towel. Kara covertly observed their typical daily behaviour as she slowly got dressed into her uniform blues, the maternity top only just fitting.

It was as if she and Lee had never been away, but for Kara everything had changed.

Despite being able to get fully dressed, Kara's boots were providing more of a problem. Unfortunately Karl was already out on an early CAP, so she had no-one to turn to for help.

"Frak," she exclaimed, in disbelief that such a simple task had become a chore. It was not easy, when you were six months pregnant with twins, to bend over on such a low down bunk.

"You okay Starbuck?" asked Hotdog as he folded over the sleeves of his flightsuit around his waist.

"Frakking fantastic," said Kara, noticing for the first time that everyone had now left for the morning debriefing, which she was supposed to be leading. Kara bent forwards, but was again hindered by her protruding belly. "Frak!" she exclaimed and threw her boot across the room, which connected with one of the lockers with a loud crash.

"Erm, do you need some help sir?" asked Hotdog as he picked up the insubordinate boot.

"Frak off Hotdog."

"Okay sir," replied Hotdog and tossed the boot in Kara's rack, "but at this rate you'll be walking about barefoot until you give birth."

As he turned to walk away Kara sighed and then called out, "tell anyone that you had to help me on with my boots and you're a dead man."

Hotdog laughed as Kara stuck out her leg. Neither said a word as Hotdog slid on her boots and tied up the laces. Kara had her head turned away, preferring to look up at the ceiling.

"All done," said Hotdog once he had finished tying up the laces.

"Thanks," replied Kara in a small voice.

"Um, sir?" asked Hotdog after he had stood up.

"What?"

"This is a good look for you."

"What do you mean?" asked Kara confused.

"This," Hotdog said gesturing towards her stomach, "It looks good on you."

"Oh," said Kara surprised and stroking her belly. "Believe me the leg cramps and constant need for the head isn't quite so attractive." Hotdog laughed briefly before Kara continued, "come on, your late for the morning briefing and you know the CAG can be a bitch."

Hotdog smiled and walked out of the bunk room quickly leaving Kara alone so she could hoist herself up from the bunk. She would have to practice getting dressed because she flat out refused to rely upon others for the rest of her pregnancy.

******************************************************************************

_Battlestar Pegasus – Orbiting Caprica_

Caprica loomed brightly in front of the raptor as they entered into her atmosphere. It was a bumpy ride as they descended gradually, heading toward the city of Delphi, where Caprica's military base was located. When the Pegasus had jumped to Caprica they were surprised to find that the cylons had gone completely. There were no baseships orbiting the planet and no raiders leading a patrol. Unfortunately there was no sign that the cylons had been destroyed, leading Cain to believe that they had simply left. She had immediately ordered an expedition to the surface in order to search for arms and a Tylium refinery ship.

Lee was in the leading raptor that was currently a couple of miles out of Delphi. Each minute was bringing him closer to the man that could ruin any chance he had to be with Kara, but he was also fulfilling the promise that he would help her bring him back. There was a part of Lee, however, that secretly hoped Sam Anders had died on Caprica, but he quickly suppressed this thought. The rest of Lee couldn't bear the thought of Kara being upset, wherever she was.

It did not take long for the five raptors to reach the outer limits of Delphi, and Lee lead half of the occupants into the woods Kara had described. The other occupants of the raptors headed into Delphi, led by Showboat, to see if anything remained of their old airbase. It was a long trek towards what Lee thought was the direction of the school, and he was only being guided by what he could remember of Kara's haphazard map. The rain was pouring down, unseasonal for the time of year.

"You certain this is the right direction Apollo?" asked Narcho with his gun at the ready.

"Nope," replied Lee, grabbing his binoculars from his belt and pausing to see if he could see any sign of the school. He could hear Taylor cursing behind him "Is there a problem Stinger?"

"Just don't know why we are wandering aimlessly out here when we could be searching for arms back in Delphi."

"Because there could be hundreds of survivors out here," replied Lee. "What's the use of weapons if there aren't enough people to use them?"

"If we can frakking find them," muttered Narcho. 

"Apollo's right," added Ratchet. "What's the point of fighting if we're just going to die out, we need people."

"Shut the frak up, Ratchet," said Taylor, only slightly seriously.

"Shhh," said Lee quietly as he heard a noise in the distance. Everyone paused suddenly, their guns at the ready. Lee held out is hand and motioned for them to get down undercover. No-one hesitated in following his order, afraid that the toasters had decided to stay after all.

"What do you hear?" whispered Narcho to Lee.

_Nothing but the rain, _thought Lee, remembering the banter Kara had with his father, which he never understood. Lee pushed away his thoughts of Kara in order to concentrate on his current situation. He had about twenty people with him all clad in their combat fatigues and helmets, with guns aiming further into the forest. Suddenly Lee saw the flash of a small person coming through the trees and then the sound of sudden gunfire.

"Hold your fire!" he shouted and ran towards the figure that had fled into some overgrowth.

"Frak," shouted Narcho. "I thought it was a godsdamn toaster."

Narcho ran in the direction of Lee leaving the others confused.

"What the frak was it?" asked Taylor but Narcho and Lee ignored him.

Lee slowed as he reached the small mound cowering in the undergrowth, "hello?" The mound suddenly sprung up and ran away underneath Lee's arm, colliding straight into Narcho.

"Whoa, easy there kiddo."

The kid, who looked to be about eight years old, started to squeal and struggle against Narcho, kicking him hard in the shin.

"Arggh, the little frakker kicked me!" he shouted.

The sound of several gun safety-catches being disengaged suddenly caught his attention. They were surrounded by an unknown number of people.

Lee lowered his gun, hoping that these were the people he was looking for. "Is Sam Anders with you?" he called out. There was no answer so Lee added, "I'm a friend of Kara Thrace."

After a few moments a figure emerged from the trees with his gun raised directly at Lee, "where's Kara Thrace?"

"Who are you?" asked Lee.

"I'm Sam Anders, and I repeat, where is Kara Thrace?"

Lee turned to his companions and signalled for them to lower their weapons before turning his attention back to his unsuspecting rival. _Why did she have to pick someone so frakking tall?_

After a moment of studying Anders, Lee realised he had not responded, "I'm Lee Adama, my ship has come back to rescue survivors and supplies from the Colonies."

_Lee Adama? _Anders knew that name. Kara had told him one night about this man that she served with on the Galactica. He had known straight away that Lee Adama was not just a friend to Kara, but he had pushed away his jealousy. Anders now knew that her feelings were reciprocated.

Lee walked over and stood in front of Anders and held out his hand, which was taken it straight away, and shaken firmly. It wasn't just Lee's aim at being polite that provoked this gesture, rather it was to stop him from marring the guy's face with a well placed punch.

After a short walk they arrived finally at the survivor's camp. The school was much like Lee imagined it to be, scant but full of honourable people who had done so much in order to survive.

"We lost over half of us after Kara left," said Anders leaning against the side of a truck, which Lee recognised immediately as once belonging to Kara. Lee wondered if she still kept a small arsenal under her chair. Much like her flying, Kara's driving had been more of an experience then a pleasure. Not that Lee could talk, having nearly killed them both in a car accident a few months before Zak's death.

"There were only about fifty of us left," added Anders, "then the toasters had us surrounded, but they just stopped. We haven't seen them since."

"What? Nothing?" asked Lee, he was shocked, but it would explain the lack of baseships above the planet.

"Not a peep in over three weeks. After ten days we started sending search parties around Delphi, Caprica City and some of the nearby towns. We managed to find about one hundred more people."

"Had they been hiding?"

"Some of them were, others were being held in large facilities, all of whom were women, probably awaiting processing."

Lee nodded his head in understanding, "the farms."

"Where's Kara?" asked Anders, knowing something was wrong.

Lee knew he had to come clean, "I wish I knew." Lee spent the next few minutes explaining as much as could about Kara's last whereabouts and why the Pegasus had returned to Caprica instead of the Galactica.

Anders turned away obviously disturbed by what he was hearing, "frak."

"They weren't trying to make her into one of their experiments," replied Lee, knowing that this information was a small consolation.

As much as Lee wanted to talk about Kara, he had more pressing things to discuss. He looked around to make sure no-one else was within earshot, knowing that if he was overheard by the wrong people he would be a dead man. "Look, you've got to listen to me and we need to act fast. The Pegasus is very different from the Galactica and Admiral Cain is frakking crazy. She wants all able-bodied people to be taken on board, probably shoved into a uniform; she doesn't give a frak about anybody else."

"What? We've got over forty children here, and gods knows how many more still hiding out there."

"That's why we have to act fast, because I have no intention of listening to Cain's orders. If we're not careful then she'll abandon all of you here, and not even flinch as she presses the button to send me straight out of the nearest airlock."

Suddenly Lee had Anders' full attention as they hatched their plan.

**********************************************************************************

_Battlestar Galactica_

Adama spent most of his sober moments watching her from afar. He had not been able to stand beside her bed as she slept nor when she had awoken. He knew that he had failed Kara in the worse possible way, abandoning her and her unborn children when they needed him the most. His inaction had also led to the death of his only surviving son. During most of his spare time Adama was finding comfort at the bottom of a bottle, a sorry reminder of what Lee's mother had been. He was becoming a drunk like her; either that or he had become one already.

Adama wished he could stop, but the guilt was eating away at his soul. He had not been able to face holding a vigil at Kara's beside, pretending everything was okay, but he had watched from outside. Every day he looked to see if anything had changed in her condition only to be disappointed. Adama was relieved when she had awoken, but again through his cowardice he couldn't face seeing her.

Kara's defiance at telling anyone anything about her disappearance had not helped matters. As much as Adama longed for redemption, he also needed answers. Kara was his best hope of finding out what had happened to Lee, why he had been taken away from him, and she was hiding behind amnesia. Adama knew she was lying, it was skill she was not adept at. The shielding of her emotions was more Kara's speciality.

Kara's report, only covering how she and Lee had been captured, coupled together with the Chief's report, had only managed to stoke Adama's anger further. The whole incident had been avoidable.

Adama watched, half in anger and half in guilt, as Kara addressed the pilots in the Ready room. Even though she was heavily pregnant Kara could still command a room's complete attention.

"Duck and Kat will be leading the CAP today, with Hotdog and Jester as back-up," she said with authority.

"And what will you be doing whilst we're out there putting our asses on the line?" interrupted Kat, who was slouched in a seat on the front row.

"You're out of line Kat," replied Kara putting her hands on her hips and staring intently towards the front row. She seemed unnerved by the Lieutenant's bravado.

"I think everyone in here has a right to know why we have to answer to someone who can't even fit into a viper anymore. What are you even contributing to the fleet?"

"That's enough Kat," said Karl turning towards her, but Kat seemed undeterred.

Kara stared down at Kat, "adding to the population count lieutenant, last time I checked that was the most important key to the survival of the human race. In fact, I'm so good that I can even produce two at the same time. Last time I checked, however, your kill count was way down, been at the stims again have we?"

"Frak you," muttered Kat under her breath.

"Care to say that a little louder?" boomed Adama's voice throughout the room. All of the pilots jumped up from their chairs and stood at attention. The room was suddenly very quiet. "I repeat, Lieutenant, care to say that a little louder?" Adama's voice still held his authoritarian tone as he walked to the front and stood directly in front of Kat.

"I cannot remember, sir," said Kat firmly.

"Well then I think you need to report to the Chief for cleaning duty every down-time period you have until you do remember."

"Yes, sir" said Kat attempting to hide her irritation.

"Everyone dismissed, we have a CAP to launch," said Adama still staring down at Kat. She quickly shrunk away and followed the other pilots out of the room until it was only Adama and Kara remaining.

Kara remained resolutely still at her podium, not flinching even when Adama turned towards her. She could barely recognise him, the Adama countenance was still there but his face looked so tired and drawn out like he had been ill.

"What do you hear?" asked Adama in a monotone voice.

"Nothing but the rain, sir" answered Kara in an equally flat tone.

They both stood there studying each other for what seemed like an eternity.

It was Adama who spoke first, throwing down the papers that were in his hand, "this report is unacceptable."

"It's the truth," replied Kara not backing down, she too was angry with Adama. She had no idea why he was avoiding her, seeming to disregard her existence. Kara also felt guilty that she had been rescued and Lee had not, and she suspected Adama felt the same way.

"What happened on that baseship?" asked Adama, anger resonating through his words.

"I don't remember."

"Bullshit," he shouted in response, making Kara flinch slightly. He paced around the room in order to calm himself down. Finally he turned towards her with a look of pleading in his eyes, which was enough to nearly break Kara's resolve. "I need to know what happened to my son."

"I can't," replied Kara in a small voice. She coughed briefly into her hand and pulled back her inner strength. "I wish I could but I don't remember," she lied in a sturdy voice.

Adama looked disappointed and silently picked up the report before leaving the room without saying a word. Kara felt the lonely tear flow down her cheek. She wished she could tell him what happened, but it was too much for her to face at the moment, let alone tell another person what had been done to them. Those longs weeks in captivity would haunt Kara for the rest of her life and she was no-where near ready to share her nightmares with anybody else. Kara suddenly felt very alone and redundant as she remained in the Ready room. She desperately wanted to be in her viper, but there was no way she would be getting it back anytime soon.

"Come on kiddoes we've got some really boring paperwork to complete," said Kara to her stomach. She stoked her belly gently as her babies responded with a couple of sharp kicks. "Guess you're just as excited as I am huh?"

Kara realised then as the kicks continued that she would never be alone again, which made a smile briefly to herself.

After hours of writing and a huge pile of paper later, Kara walked towards the CIC to deliver her daily report to Tigh. She knew that Adama would also be there, but would not let him stand in the way of doing her job. Tigh nearly did a double-take when she entered and then looked down at her belly.

"Well, you finally managed to make it out of your bed," he said in his normal sarcastically gruff voice.

Kara suppressed the urge to roll her eyes and handed over the paperwork, "here are the updated reports for you sir."

"At last, Agathon didn't seem to get the idea of daily reporting. I expect today's report tomorrow morning at 0800 hours."

Kara saluted, "yes, sir." She looked briefly at Adama and then turned to walk away. She was halfway out of the CIC when she felt his presence next to her. "Sir?"

"Doc Cottle will have my ass if I let you overwork yourself. Your shifts are to start at 0800 and finish at 1600 at the latest, is that clear?"

Kara was confused, was he chewing her ass out again or was he genuinely concerned for her wellbeing? Either way Kara had no choice but to agree, "Yes sir."

For a moment she saw warmness in Adama's eyes before he walked back towards Tigh.

"A member of the Colonial clergy will be coming on board tomorrow," added Adama as he looked at the dradis consol. "You are to report to him at 1500 hours, no exceptions."

Kara suppressed the urge to curse and looked intently towards Adama before answering sternly, "yes sir."

Kara could finally relax once she had left the CIC, the tension in her shoulders finally releasing. One thing was for certain, she would not be telling this man from the Colonial clergy anything, or listening to any of his preaching. Growing up Kara had had enough of religious fanatics telling her how she should be feeling. Kara had her own faith and that was all she needed in that regard.

*******************************************************************************

_Caprica_

"Tell me Stinger, what the frak are we doing here?" asked Narcho as they sat in the woods along the perimeter of the school, rain beating down on their heads.

"Thought that was obvious Narc," replied Taylor keeping his attention on the woods, in case the toasters decided they wanted to stay on Caprica after all.

"Not to me, Cain doesn't care about rescuing people."

"No, but she does care about recruiting more marines and potential pilots."

"Come on Sting, we can't leave these kids here, you know that."

"Those sound like mutinous words to me Lieutenant," replied Taylor without much conviction. He also knew that what Cain was doing was wrong but there was nothing he could do about it. "Look, I don't agree with it either, I had a wife and kid back on Virgon when the cylons attacked."

"Aw man," said Narcho shocked. "I'm sorry Sting, I had no idea." He really didn't either; Taylor had never been explicit about his life.

"Thanks to Cain, at least I know now that they didn't suffer, it would have been quick. I won't go against her orders no matter what I think about them, she's our leader," added Taylor sighing. "But if you want to help "daddy's boy" with whatever plan he is hatching then I won't tell her either."

Narcho nodded before focusing his attention back on the woods. Later he would go to his CAG and ask to be let in on any plans he might have.

*******************************************************************************

Lee had to give Anders credit, he was a good listener. Lee had talked relentlessly for what seemed like hours, making up most of his plan as he went along. He knew that there was no way to smuggle stowaways onboard the Pegasus, which would be an open invitation for a first class seat in the nearest airlock. Lee's hopes lay with the Tylium ship, it would be loud and dirty, but it would keep them safe.

"So how do you plan on getting my people on board the Tylium ship unnoticed?" asked Anders sounding slightly sceptical.

"We won't have a lot of time and we'll need to do it at night," replied Lee. "As soon as we have secured a ship I'll let you know. Pick your men carefully, people you can trust."

"I trust all my men, can you say the same about yours?"

Lee stepped back for a moment, "not really, so it's going to be up to you."

"And if we fail?"

"Then we're completely frakked," replied Lee honestly.

Anders had no idea what to make of this man, was he brave or completely frakking crazy? Anders knew one thing however; he had no choice but to trust him. He would rather die then leave anybody behind. "I'll talk to my men, tell them to get ready."

Lee nodded, stopping as he saw the dogtag around Anders neck, Kara's tag. Lee immediately felt a pang of jealousy, which didn't go unnoticed to Anders. There was definitely something going on between Kara and this man that Anders was not privy to.

Lee swallowed the lump in his throat, "We also need to collect as many resources as possible, food, blankets, the usual."

"Right, I'll just walk pop to the nearest supermarket and do some shopping," replied Anders sarcastically.

Lee suddenly walked up to Anders so that he was right in his face, "you need to listen to me, because right now I'm the only chance you've got. I don't give a frak what you think of me, just get it done otherwise your people will starve to death."

Anders stared down at Lee, his attempt at intimidation fleeting. "I'll scramble together as much as I can, but you're going to have to bring over supplies from the Pegasus."

"We'll deal with that if and when it occurs," replied Lee.

The two rivals then separated, each returning to their respective people. Lee hid the truth of his plan from all of them. He trusted Ratchet to keep quiet but would not risk the young man's life.

Surprisingly that evening, as Lee patrolled through the woods, Narcho had walked up to him. He did not openly offer to defy Cain, but subtly let Lee know that he would help with any unofficial plans. Lee had been so taken aback that he did not answer the lieutenant. Narcho had nodded and told him that he didn't expect an answer but would available if needed. Lee decided that he would use Narcho's help, he had volunteered after all. Lee would also feel less guilty should Narcho get caught.

Lee smiled to himself, in the last twenty-four hours he had committed mutiny for the second time in his military career. What was even better, he didn't give a frak about the consequences, he knew what was right and that was the path he would choose. Lee knew that his plan didn't hold as much "flair" as anything Kara would come up with, but he was confident that it would work. Cain was up on the Pegasus far away and Lee was the one with the power on Caprica. Her concentration was focused on obtaining weapons; it would be very unlikely that the Tylium ship would ever be searched, or so Lee hoped.

Lee carried on with his patrol, inwardly laughing at the irony. Throughout his time at the academy Lee had built up a reputation for being straight laced. His old classmates would be shocked to see what Lee was becoming now, a mutinous, discipline case.

Lee laughed to himself, Kara had definitely been a bad influence on him.

********************************************************************************

_Battlestar Galactica_

Kara arrived at the room at exactly 1500 hours, looking at her watch she sighed before knocking at the hatch. She really did not want to be here, but if she ever wanted to be in Adama's good graces again then Kara had no choice.

The muffled voice on the other side of the door told her to enter, which she did so entering into a scant room containing only a table and two chairs. The man from the Colonial Clergy sat in the chair facing the door. He was leaned forward with his elbows on the table and his hands supporting his chin.

Kara didn't like him straight away, he gave her the creeps and there was something hauntingly familiar about him that she couldn't quite place.

"Well, why don't you take a seat," said the man, in what Kara could only describe as a mocking voice.

Kara pulled the chair out far from the table and slouched down. The man sat back up and looked intently at her. Neither spoke, creating an eerie atmosphere in the room.

After a couple of minutes Kara started to get restless, "is that all? Cause I've got somewhere else to be."

"Well, Commander Adama has ordered you to be here, so why don't you start talking," replied the man in the same irritating tone.

"Well I don't have anything to talk about, so you're wasting your time. I don't remember anything." Kara crossed her arms to show her resolution; she could feel her babies turning somersaults in her belly.

"Why don't you just talk about what you do remember?"

Kara sighed and threw up her arms, and got to her feet, "this is a frakking waste of time."

"If you ever want to be cleared for flight again, then you'll need to sit back down young lady."

"What?"

"I'll be in charge of your psych evaluation, and by the way it isn't looking good so far."

"For frak sake," muttered Kara before she sat reluctantly back down.

The man squinted his eyes, "that's better. Now I think we started off badly, I'm a member of the Colonial clergy, but you can call me Cavil."

Kara sat back in her chair, only half listening as Cavil continued to talk, no matter what he said she wasn't going to talk, not yet. So instead Kara sat back and ignored him, completely unaware of the imminent danger that was currently sitting in front of her.


	24. Court Martial

Chapter 23

Kara played with her hands as the raptor travelled slowly towards Colonial One. Cottle had finally removed the cast and ordered Kara to exercise her hand whenever she could. The ache had finally gone, but it was still stiff when she twisted it, however it was likely that given time she would be back to normal. Kara sighed and folded her arms on top of her bump, she was a few weeks shy of seven months pregnant, and would soon begin stretching the buttons on her tunic.

Kara had no idea why the President had summonsed her to Colonial One and Adama had not been explicit. He had only told her that the Roslin wished to discuss an important matter with her and walked away before Kara could protest.

Adama still seemed angry with her and had alienated himself from the rest of the crew. The previous week Kara had needed one of her frequent trips to the head in the middle of the night. On her way back to the bunk room she had met Adama, who was stumbling drunk through the corridor with an empty bottle in his hand. He was obviously heading for the officer's Mess to see if he could find more alcohol. Kara had asked him if he was okay but Adama had just looked at her intently for a moment before continuing into the Mess room, where he promptly tripped over a table and fell to the floor. Kara had walked over to him and attempted to help him up but Adama had shrugged her away and continued to lie on the floor.

In the end Kara had awoken a very disgruntled Tigh in order to get Adama back to his rack.

"How long's he been like this?" Kara had asked.

"Since the funeral," answered Tigh looking down at Adama. "He _has_ lost both of his sons now."

Kara had merely nodded in response and then walked back to the bunk room. The next day Adama appeared in CIC as if nothing had happened, however his eyes were bloodshot. Kara wondered how long it would be before he couldn't even make it to the CIC anymore. For all her faults, Kara's mother had never been a drunk and for that Kara was thankful, knowing that she would likely be dead if Socrata had been. On one occasion Kara had been present when Lee's mother was in one of her drunken stupors. They hadn't noticed that she was asleep on the sofa, overhearing the shouting and screaming coming from the usually docile Mrs Adama.

The raptor docked, coming as a relief to Kara. The last time she had been travelling to Colonial One in a raptor it had ended very badly. She was led by Billy from the hangar into the main area of the ship, containing many comfy chairs set out and Roslin's desk. Sitting on one of the sofas was Roslin and in the other were a man and woman who Kara had never seen before. Roslin stood up immediately as she entered and greeted Kara with a warm smile.

"Lieutenant Thrace, thank you for coming over on such short notice."

"It's actually Captain now, Madam President," replied Kara as she lowered herself into a chair.

Roslin looked intently upon her protruding belly and smiled. "My apologies Captain. May I say it is good to see that you are so well recovered?"

"Thank you."

"Can I introduce you to my other guests?" asked Roslin gesturing towards the eager looking couple.

"Um, of course," replied Kara suddenly very unsure and wary of why she was there.

"This is David and Jane Wicks, they live on the Rising Star."

The couple smiled at Kara as they held each other's hands tenderly, making her feel very uncomfortable. "It's so good to finally meet you," said the man.

"Okay," replied Kara.

"May I?" asked the woman holding out her hand towards Kara's belly.

"Excuse me?" asked Kara, unable to hide the shock in her voice, her tone clearly affecting the meek woman.

"Perhaps I should explain," interrupted Roslin. "When you were in your coma I had concerns over your impending condition. There are many couples in the fleet who cannot have children of their own..."

"You were going to give my kids away!" shouted out Kara, not caring that she was speaking to the President of the Colonies.

"Settle down please Captain, at the time we had no idea if you would ever wake up again. I wanted to make sure that they would be properly cared for should the worst happen."

Kara shuffled in her chair, clearly suppressing her anger. She also silently thanked the gods for waking her up in time. Remembering that she was in front of the President, Kara attempted to use a calmer tone when she finally spoke, "and what would have happened if I woke up after their birth? Would you have ever told me I was pregnant?"

Roslin was taken aback; she had to admit that that was not a scenario she had considered. After the Gemenese representative had come to see her about an impending important birth all her attention had been focused on searching for the story quoted. It was uncanny the resemblance Kara seemed to have to the woman in the story, not that she knew anything about the Captain's past. Roslin had decided then that she would need to make steps to ensure the safety of the twins.

"Would you?" asked Kara again, obviously annoyed at Roslin's lack of response.

"Captain," replied Roslin in a firmer tone. "May I remind you where you are? Now I asked you here today because I wanted to discuss your plans for your children."

"I don't have any plans. I'm pregnant and then I'll give birth, it's pretty simple."

Roslin ignored Kara's brevity and continued, "I meant after the birth, what are you planning to do?"

"I haven't really thought that far ahead."

"Well, that is why I wanted to introduce you to David and Jane. They are one of the couples I had shortlisted." Roslin smiled towards the eager looking couple. They were so perfect looking it made Kara feel completely inadequate. "They were on their honeymoon on the Rising Star when the attacks happened. David is a doctor and Jane is a school teacher."

"Unfortunately we discovered a few months ago that Jane cannot have children," said the man as he stroked his wife's hand. She looked down sadly and placed her other hand over his. Kara suppressed the urge to sigh, finding the situation more and more irritating. It wasn't that she didn't feel sympathetic to their situation, but it felt like they were shoving the fact that they were more deserving of a child right in her face.

"Look, you both seem like really nice people," said Kara in her gentlest tone. "But my kids are staying with me."

"Captain," added Roslin. "I do not believe you have really thought through your situation. You are on your own, how are going to bring up twins on a Battlestar? David and Jane are in a good position to offer so much to your children as opposed..."

"...to a dumb viper jock like me?" interrupted Kara.

"That's not..."

"Just save it, I'm not interested." Kara lifted herself up out of her chair and walked swiftly towards the exit of the room, ignoring Roslin's calls behind her. She was about to leave, but a sharp kick stopped her. Kara turned back around towards Roslin, "Madam President," she began before pausing for a moment. "I know I'm not the ideal mother, and I have no idea how I'm going to cope with two babies. But I will not give them away and it's not just up to me. Until their father says otherwise these babies are staying with me."

"Your records state that there are multiple possibilities for the father's identity."

Kara looked directly at Roslin, a silent communication passing between the two of them. Kara knew exactly who the father was, but couldn't reveal their identity. Either the person was too controversial or it was too painful for Kara to even face at the moment. Part of Roslin guessed who the elusive father's identity was, but she vowed to herself that she would never reveal her suspicions to anyone. She respected Captain Apollo too much to expose the mother of his children, especially due to the Commander's current condition.

* * *

Kara attempted to discreetly lift her foot and make circular motions as she stood behind the lectern in the Ready room. She had been on her feet all day and her ankles had started to swell up. She was still reeling from her encounter with Roslin two days later. Kara knew that she was unlikely to ever win "mother of the year" but she couldn't give them away. The gods had blessed her with children and she would not abandon them.

The new bunch of nuggets in front of her was extremely green, barely legal to vote let alone put their lives on the line. It was going to take forever to teach them basic flight and Kara already doubted if any of them had the chops to fly a viper. Even her lecture on basic flight safety techniques seemed to fall on deaf ears. At the academy Kara had six months to fully train a cadet for basic flight and service as an officer. The cadets then had two months' extra viper training on a Battlestar before being drafted out to their service ships. Now they only had six weeks, and no simulators to train them in combat as they learnt basic flight, and every time they went out to train they ran the risk of being blown up by a surprise cylon attack.

Just when Kara thought her week couldn't get any worse, it did. The unassuming marine entered the Ready room and handed over a folded sheet of paper to her.

The marine saluted, "from Commander Adama Sir."

Kara took the piece of paper and nodded to the marine who promptly walked back out of the room. She immediately opened up the paper and read through it.

_A frakking Court Martial!_

"What the frak!" voiced Kara making her nuggets jump. She read the paper again to make sure she had read it correctly. Sure enough, she was to report to the main conference room for a Court Martial at 12.00 the next day.

Kara cursed loudly before turning to her nuggets, "Dismissed, go find the gym and work out or something."

The nuggets didn't hesitate, sensing Kara's bad mood and rushed out of the room. Kara remained at her lectern trying to work out what she had done wrong. Perhaps Roslin had told Adama about their meeting, despite Kara having thought they had come to an understanding.

* * *

At 1130 hours the next day Kara, dressed in her duty blues, arrived at the conference room, which was closed off. Tigh had been waiting outside the door and told her to stay outside until she was called in, his voice holding its usual coldness. Kara had attempted to find out what the Court Martial was all about, but Tigh brushed her off and entered into the conference room closing the door firmly behind him.

It seemed like time was really dragging as Kara leaned against the wall outside the conference room. It was 1140 hours when Tyrol walked up and stood next to her. He wasn't in his usual orange overalls, wearing his green uniform instead.

"Come to watch the condemned former hotshot pilot have her ass handed to her on plate?" asked Kara exhaustedly with her head still leaned up against the wall.

"Nope, I'm here to join you," replied Tyrol annoyed.

Kara pushed off from the wall and faced the Chief, "what the frak did _you _do?"

"Who knows, but I think we're about to find out."

Just at that moment Tigh opened the conference room door and led them both inside. As always the tables in the room were set out in a crescent shape, and Kara and Tyrol sat in two chairs set out in the middle of the room, looking decidedly annoyed at being there. Adama was facing them with papers on the desk. Tigh and Sergeant Hadrian were sitting next to him and Karl was sat at the end of the row looking guilty. At the other end of the row was Dualla, looking slightly smug.

It was Adama who spoke first, "It's customary when disciplining a pilot and a deckhand to have the CAG and Chief of the deck sitting in on the Court Martial. But as those two people are sitting in front of me now, we will have to make do with the D-CAG and the next highest ranking Petty Officer." Adama's voice was cutting, each word piercing straight through Kara and Tyrol. They knew that Adama was pissed and that they were in serious trouble.

Adama paused before beginning the proceedings. Kara had faced a Court Martial before and knew that he was not quite following the normal procedure or etiquette. She even doubted if the proper paperwork for such proceedings was even available.

Adama began with the usual legal jargon, telling them that they were entitled to a lawyer and one could be found if requested. Both of them declined.

"Chief Petty Officer Galen Tyrol please stand," ordered Adama. Tyrol rose from the chair and stood to attention. "Chief, you are here today to face one charge of breaching Colonial Fleet procedure..."

Tyrol shifted his feet slightly as Adama read out the indictment. "...that as Chief of the deck you wilfully allowed the unscheduled launch of Raptor 450 contrary to rule 865.7 of the Colonial Fleet Manual, which states that all launches from any vessel must be cleared and authorised through the requisite CIC prior to the said launch. The unscheduled launch of Raptor 450, containing officers Lieutenant Kara Thrace and Captain Lee Adama, resulted in the loss of the raptor and disappearance of said occupants and later the death of Captain Lee Adama..."

Kara flinched as Adama mentioned the death of Lee; she still didn't believe that he was gone forever and hated when others stated to the contrary.

"...Chief Petty Officer Galen Tyrol how do you plead?"

Tyrol thought for a moment before stating "guilty Sir."

Adama nodded, "duly notes, please sit. Captain Kara Thrace please stand."

It took Kara a little longer than Tyrol to stand up and she stood to attention as best she could.

"Captain, you are here today to face two charges of breaching Colonial Fleet Procedure..." Kara phased out as Adama repeated the same indictment that he had read out to Tyrol. As he spoke, she looked over towards Karl who gave her a rueful smile, in order to convey that he was not here by choice.

"...Captain Kara Thrace how do you plead?"

Before Kara had time to answer, Tyrol stood up and interrupted, "sorry Sir, can I add something?"

"Go ahead Chief."

"It was myself and Captain Adama who knew that launch procedures were being breached Sir. Captain Thrace was asked to pilot the raptor as she was on the deck and wearing a flightsuit. She had no idea that I had not cleared the flight through the CIC."

"Thank you Chief, please sit. Captain Kara Thrace how do you plead?"

Kara wasn't sure if Tyrol was completely correct in what he had said, but she had nothing to lose, "not guilty Sir," she said with a sneer.

Adama looked at her clearly annoyed, "fine, based on the chief's testimony I will discontinue with this charge. The second charge laid against you is that you have acted in a behaviour unbecoming of an officer, contrary to Rule 3 of the Colonial Fleet Manual. In that during an unspecified time you wilfully partook in relations with an unknown member or members of this crew, and that said relations resulted in your current, and obviously unplanned, pregnancy and subsequent removal from flight duty."

Kara bit the inside of her lip to stop herself from shouting out at Adama as he laid down the bullshit charge that was basically labelling her as a slut. Kara had known that one day her promiscuity would get her into serious trouble, but this was not quite how she imagined it happening.

"Captain Kara Thrace how do you plead?"

"Guilty Sir," said Kara, the annoyance clear in her voice.

Kara and Tyrol were made to wait outside for a few minutes as their sentences were decided. They both knew it wasn't a good sign when two marines walked into the room. When they were led back in both stood to attention in front of Adama.

"We have discussed possible sentencing," started Adama. "I understand that you both have a lot of paperwork to catch up on, and as you both face one charge each I have decided to sentence you both to five days in the brig. Marines please lead Captain Thrace and the Chief to the brig."

"I know the way," added Kara with spite and shrugged off the marine who started to lead her towards the door.

* * *

Later that evening Kara lay on her bunk in the brig and looked up at the ceiling as Tyrol sat on his bunk in the adjacent cell. At least the marines had placed tables and chairs in each of the cells and a screen around the toilet.

Kara sighed. "You know, out of all the situations I have ever found myself in... I swear this was one that my mother had actually predicted," she said gesturing to her stomach.

"What's that?" asked Tyrol.

"Being locked up in a cell and heavily pregnant," replied Kara and then turned her head towards Tyrol. "My mother didn't have a lot of faith in me." After a few moments Kara began to laugh, "You've got to admit this situation is a little ridiculous."

Tyrol laughed too, "Yeah it doesn't look too good." After a few minutes he asked, "Sir, why didn't you tell the Commander the truth?"

"What do you mean?"

"About the father."

Kara pushed herself up to a sitting position and threw her legs over the side of the bunk, "what the frak do you know about that?"

"Let's just say that the general crew is unaware that I have a habit of hiding out in the corner of my office."

"What the frak does... oh," said Kara as the realisation dawned on her. She scrunched up her face from the embarrassment of having been so blatantly caught out. "Frak, I'm sorry you had to see, and probably hear that Chief."

"So is he..."

"Yeah."

"Then I am really sorry. I've gone over that what happened on the hangar deck over and over, if I had known..." started Tyrol, the remorse in his voice obvious.

"Look Chief, it was an accident. We've all bent the rules thousands of times, that day was no different. I don't blame you for what happened."

Tyrol's burden seemed slightly relaxed at Kara's words, but she knew his mistake would always eat away at him.

* * *

One of the skills that Kara was renowned for was making a bad situation even worse, usually assisted by her inability to keep her mouth shut.

On the second day of her incarceration, Adama had ordered her to write another report on what had happened with the cylons and to also explain the lineage of her future offspring. Once again she had written that the father could be a number of possibilities and refused to reveal who they were. She had also maintained that she could not remember anything beyond being on the downed raptor.

Kara had not heard anything since then and it was now the evening of her fourth day in the brig. It was the longest she had ever spent locked up, usually escaping after the first night. She missed not being able to spend her time doing press-ups, but thankfully one of the marines had smuggled a pack of cards in. Most of her evenings were spent playing triad with Tyrol and whoever was on guard duty, and her days were spent catching up with paperwork. Fortunately the time had gone quickly.

Kara had just won the pot in their evening triad game when an obviously drunk Adama, followed by a sober Tigh, entered the brig. The duty marine, Private Fox, stood quickly to attention and backed away from the cells.

"Open the cell," ordered Adama pointing at Kara.

"Bill, this is not the time," said Tigh, but he was clearly ignored.

Kara rose from her chair and stood in the middle of the room as Fox opened the cell. He looked concerned but Kara nodded that she was okay. Adama entered and stood about two metres in front of her when he brought out some papers from his pocket. He then screwed up the paper and suddenly threw the ball across to the side of the room making Kara flinch slightly.

"This report is unacceptable," he said angrily.

Kara was fed up, they had had this argument before. "That's not my problem sir."

"It is when one of my highest ranking officers lies on an official report," replied Adama raising his voice.

"I told you, I don't remember!"

"Bullshit," said Adama, his words fierce and powerful. "You'll sit at this table and write the report again."

"No!" replied Kara in a vicious voice that was no match for Adama's.

"I gave you an order Captain!"

"And I said no!"

Adama covered the distance to Kara in an instant until he was right in her face but dodging her bump. Stubbornly Kara refused to flinch or look away, meeting his gaze directly.

Adama's was not shouting anymore but his voice was now full of malice, "You're a disgrace and I would have you off my ship if we weren't at war. You're a senior officer who got herself knocked up without knowing who the father is, you're an embarrassment."

Adama walked away towards the exit of the cell. Kara knew she should have left it there, but holding her tongue had never been one of her strong suits. Kara held back the tears and turned her head to the side so she wouldn't have to look Adama in the eye when she dropped her bombshell.

"They're Lee's," she said quietly but loud enough for everyone in the room to hear.

Before anyone could react, Adama had spun around, his breathing heavy as he ran at Kara. One hand connected with her shoulder and his other arm came up against her throat. He kept pushing her backwards until she connected sharply with the wall. Kara struggled to keep upright as she was pushed and her head smashed hard against the wall making her see stars.

"Bill!" yelled out Tigh entering the cell.

Kara could see the hatred in Adama's eyes as he pinned her to the wall, but she couldn't stop herself from laughing out hysterically in his face.

"I don't see what's so funny _Captain_," said Adama gruffly.

Again Kara couldn't keep her mouth shut as she said viciously, "actually I find it hilarious Sir. You once said that you considered me as family, but you would rather accept the rumour that I am the whore of the fleet then accept the _fact_ that I was frakking your son."

Adama grabbed his hand around Kara's throat and spun her quickly away from the wall, causing her to fall heavily to the floor on her back, with his hand still choking her. Adama ignored the shouts from the others in the room as he stared down at Kara. He had no idea what he was doing, his world suddenly turning into a blur. However, after a few seconds he released his grip, just before Tigh grabbed his arm and dragged him out of the brig.

Kara couldn't stop the tears from coming as she lay on the floor. Fox had quickly run over to ask if she was okay and she could vaguely hear Tyrol calling out to her. The world was spinning, and the second blow to her head had made Kara feel decidedly sick.

"Frak, stay there Sir," said Fox panicked. "I think you might have a concussion."

Kara faded in and out of consciousness as she the lay there on the deck and only distantly heard Cottle swearing before her world went completely black.

* * *

Adama awoke with the biggest headache he had ever suffered from. He was lying on his stomach in his rack, still fully dressed with a bucket beside him, which had remnants of sick at the bottom. The room spun when he sat up and it took him a few moments to remember the evening before.

He felt the ache ripping through his heart as he remembered Kara's words, _they're Lee's_.

Adama stood from his rack with the intention of going straight back to the brig. He had just reached the hatch when a voice stopped him in his tracks.

It was Tigh, "if you're heading for the brig she's not there."

"What the frak are you doing here?" asked Adama harshly, but was answered by a swift punch to his face, which knocked him to his knees.

The next few minutes were a scuffle as the two aging men came to blows, only stopping when they had no more energy. Adama collapsed down on to the table in front of his couch and Tigh leaned himself up against a wall to get his breath back. They both had fat lips and bloody noses.

"I'm too old for this shit," said Adama exhaustedly. "Care to tell me what that was about?"

"Bill you have gone way to far this time," replied Tigh. He then grabbed an empty bottle and held it up to Adama, "this has to stop."

"You're a fine example of sobriety."

"I'm not the one who landed a heavily pregnant woman in lifestation."

"What?"

"You gave Starbuck a concussion Bill," said Tigh. He walked across the room and sat in front of Adama who was looking contrite. He was silent so Tigh continued. "Bill you could have killed her babies."

"Do you think she was telling the truth?" asked Adama finally.

"I doubt even Starbuck would lie about something like that."

Adama walked away towards his desk and took a bottle out of the bottom drawer. He poured himself a generous glassful but didn't take a sip; instead he held the glass up to his mouth and smelt the tempting contents.

"You need to sort yourself out Bill; you're turning into a drunk."

"Frak you," replied Adama taking a large swig from the glass.

Tigh jumped up and knocked the glass out of Adama's hand, which smashed against the wall, "you just put the mother of your grandchildren in lifestation." Tigh's voice was raised, his annoyance palpable. He knew being a drunk himself that he was being the biggest hypocrite, but he also knew this was the only way to reach his friend. "Do you think that Lee would ever forgive you if you had hurt his kids?"

Tigh walked away without saying anything more so Adama could mull over what he had done. As he exited the hatch Adama was slouched against the side of his desk, the tears obviously pooling in his eyes.

* * *

Cottle had not been a happy man when Kara was brought into lifestation. Thankfully she had only been out cold for about 15 minutes and there would be no lasting damage. Cottle had kept her overnight under observation, putting her into the same bed she had occupied for so long. He had also performed an emergency scan of the babies, which thankfully came back normal.

Kara's head was still pounding as she stood alone in the Ready room writing up names onto the board and updating their status. The events from the previous evening kept playing over and over in her head. She had pushed Adama to the limit, broken the man and causing him to lash out.

She had asked for it.

Memories of her childhood came back to Kara, how she had often provoked her mother, pushing until the pain of being hit stopped her. Socrata Thrace had been different from Adama though, sometimes Kara didn't always have to push to be on the receiving end of her punishments.

Kara knew that Private Fox had not been able to keep his trap shut about what he had witnessed. The stares as she walked down the corridor were clear, their eyes full of judgement. Kara didn't care about what the crew thought of her though, at the moment she only cared about one man's scrutiny. Kara knew that she had to make amends with the old man, but she had no idea how she was going to face him now that he knew about her and Lee.

Kara cursed quietly to herself, thinking that she had really frakked up this time. She bent her knees uneasily to continue writing at the bottom of the board, which was not an easy task with her protruding belly. It was the last entry that was going to defeat her, _frakking stupid thing_.

A noise from behind her made Kara spin around suddenly. A pair of intense blue eyes met hers, but she no longer saw anger behind them. Instead the old man seemed concerned and he had a carried a chair into the room.

"It would be easier to reach if you sat down," he said gruffly but pleasantly.

Kara didn't respond, instead she took the chair and sat down in front of the board and completed her last entry. When she had finished she put her pen down and just stared at the names, privately willing Adama to say something or just walk away. She couldn't stand him just watching her.

"Can you forgive a foolish old man?" he said finally.

"There's nothing to forgive," replied Kara still staring at the board. "I provoked you."

"That's no excuse for what I did."

"Then you're forgiven," replied Kara without conviction.

"Look at me Kara."

Kara felt the tears prickling her eyes, but she suppressed them as she turned to face the old man. As soon as she looked at the pain in the old man's face she had to turn away, focusing her attention to the floor. Undeterred, Adama walked up and lifted Kara's chin before taking her into a warm embrace. He then led her over to the front row of comfy chairs and they sat there in silence for many minutes, lost in their own thoughts of Lee.

Adama was the first one to break the silence, "Is what you said..."

"I wouldn't lie about that," interrupted Kara, knowing that he was going to ask that inevitable question.

"Was it just a meaningless...?"

"No."

They were silent for another minute before Kara continued in a small voice, "the frakking cylons knew. They knew that we cared about each other and... and they used it against us."

"Why did you lie?"

"And tell Lee's father how his son endured weeks of being made to watch as I was tortured? That whenever I tried to speak to him, to tell him it would be okay, that I would punished. To let his father know that the cylons finally broke him because he couldn't stand to see what they were doing to me?"

In that moment Adama understood Kara's former silence, realised that this was not how he wanted to remember his son, to hear that he had suffered cruelly and lost the battle against his tormenters.

_Lee had loved Kara_.

Adama had guessed this a long time ago, but it was the first time he had known for sure. It sent an ache through his heart to think that Lee would never know about the twins. The old man took Kara's hand tenderly into his own, letting her know he would be there for her.

They sat in silence remembering the man they had both loved.

**NB: I know I kinda made Adama into a real arse in this chapter but I had a number of reasons for doing so. In the series it really bothered me whenever he claimed to love Kara as a daughter but abandoned her when she did wrong, and also threw her to the floor. I wanted to show him hitting rock bottom and that he is now on his way back up.**


	25. Watching Them

Chapter 24

_Caprica_

As the weeks passed by, Anders still could not work out if Lee was fearless or downright crazy. His defiance of Admiral Cain's orders had not stopped at sneaking survivors onto the acquired Tylium ship. He would also suddenly disappear for long periods of time, sometimes as long as a week. Anders had lost count of the times a member of Pegasus' crew had approached him, wanting to know where Captain Adama was. He was running out of excuses for him. Most of the crew had been willing to report back that the Captain was leading a mission out into Caprica City to search for resources.

Also whenever Lee was around, he was very quiet and eyed Anders as if he considered him to be something bad under his shoe. Anders knew instinctively the source of Lee's animosity, and the reason wasn't even there to stir up the trouble. Unfortunately Anders knew the situation was not going to mend itself and that one day soon, he and Lee were going to come to blows.

Anders walked up the long road to the crest of Megara, a large hill that loomed over the outskirts of Caprica City, which lay to its South. To the east was the small town of Eretria, which met up with the coast line. The majority of wealthy commuters to Caprica City had lived in this small town. Just prior to the attacks Anders had brought a small beach house with a great view of the ocean, it was meant to be his escape from the limelight and his twentieth floor penthouse in the City.

Anders found Lee sitting on a rock on an outcropping overlooking what was left of Eretria. There was a slight breeze and the rain was light. The Captain was just sitting there in silence, ignoring his approach, so Anders walked up and just sat down on the rock next to him.

Lee shifted slightly away, giving him some room.

"They didn't have a chance did they?" said Lee quietly, still staring out into the dusk sky.

"What do you mean?" asked Anders slightly confused.

Lee gestured towards the former town below him. What had once been a bustling home to hundreds of thousands was now reduced to nothing. The cylons had wiped the entire place from existence and there was nothing left that resembled its former habitation. Surprisingly the majority of Caprica City was still intact, which Anders had discovered was because the cylons had wanted to live there. They had obviously not shared the same sentiments towards Eretria.

"Did you have a home here?" asked Anders, feeling that there was more to Lee's subdued behaviour then just sadness towards the loss of so many lives.

"Yeah," replied Lee sadly and pointed towards the base of the hill. "I grew up just down there."

"I'm sorry."

"It must have been quick for the ones down there, no pain or suffering," replied Lee in a morose tone. Anders was about to ask Lee if he was okay, when suddenly he broke out of his trance and pushed himself to his feet. "Come on, we have work to do. Did you gather together the last group?"

"Um, yeah, they're awaiting your go ahead," replied Anders looking up from his still seated position.

"Tell them to be ready by 0100 hours. I'll send Showboat over to meet you."

Without emotion the Captain turned and walked away from the crest of the hill leaving Anders looking out over the ruin town.

_There's definitely something not right about that man _he thought. Anders admired what the Captain was doing for the remaining survivors of the Colonies, but there was something that unnerved him. Lee was in deep thought all of the time, about what he was not sure, but Anders had an idea it was about Kara. He was also worried about her, wondering if she was still alive and if she was suffering. Anders could not even begin to comprehend what Lee was going through, knowing that he had probably left her behind and there was nothing he could do about it.

Anders sighed and took one last look at Eretria. He knew it was the last time that he would see the painful reminder of what they had lost. Tomorrow the survivors would be leaving Caprica and starting the long journey to gods knows where. Lee had not been explicit about the Admiral's plans. All Anders knew was that Lee had been put in charge of the search of Caprica and that other officers had been deployed to the other Colonies. They would convene after ten weeks and formulate into one crew under the Admiral's command.

Anders had not met Cain yet, but the stories were enough to convince him that he didn't want to either.

* * *

_Battlestar Galactica_

Karl was having a wonderful dream about Sharon when he was rudely awoken by a distressed whimpering emanating from somewhere in the room. It took a few moments of staring at the top of his rack to get his head straight before launching himself down his ladder. The noise was definitely coming from one of the other bunks and whoever it was seemed to be terrified. Karl walked around the room leaning his head up to the closed curtains.

"What's that frakking noise?" grunted Hotdog as he stuck his head out from behind his curtain.

Karl ignored him however as he had found the source of the noise and was crouching down in front of Kara's rack.

"Kara?" he said softly, ignoring the other occupants of the room leaning out of their bunks. Karl gently pulled back the curtain to reveal Kara, who was covered in sweat and thrashing around on her back, gripping her belly in a protective embrace.

"Kara?" repeated Karl as he gently shook her shoulder waking her up immediately. She jolted violently and pushed herself upwards to as much of a sitting position as her belly would allow. The sweat was pouring down her face and she was panting. "Whoa easy there," said Karl holding out his arms. "You were having a nightmare, everything is fine."

Kara sniffed sharply and then Karl realised that her nose was bleeding slightly. "Frak, Kara did you knock your head?" he asked and then addressed the room, "someone get a tissue."

"I'm fine," said Kara throwing her legs over the side of her and rack and wiping away the blood with her hand, which only helped to smear it across her cheek. "Frak, that hasn't happened since I was about thirteen. Quit staring at me Helo and help me up."

Karl held out his hand and Kara used his forearm to help herself up. Hotdog then came over and offered her a tissue, which she snatched out of his hand and held it to her nose. Karl led her out of the room down to the head where Kara splashed water on her face.

He wished that he knew what was going on inside her head.

"You okay Starbuck?" he asked concerned.

"Frakking fantastic."

"You were having nightmare, do you remember what it was about?"

Kara said nothing and stared up at the mirror. Karl looked at her reflection and almost saw sadness in her eyes, not at herself, but towards him. "What? What is it Kara?"

Kara splashed water into her face again before shrugging, "nothing, it was a nightmare, no biggie. I get them all the time."

For some reason Karl didn't believe her, "You woke up the entire bunkroom thrashing and crying out, you were covered in sweat and it was so bad you got a nose bleed. Sure didn't look like it was nothing."

"Well in a few weeks I'll have my own quarters so you won't have to worry about me keeping you up."

"I don't care about that," replied Karl turning Kara around by her arm.

"Look, I don't need you to stand guard over me Helo, I'll be fine," said Kara, her face stern and resolute.

Karl had known Kara long enough to know that she would not change her mind. He held up his hands in surrender, "okay, you win. But you know where I am if you need me."

"I'm going to take a shower," said Kara, walking back towards the bunk room to no doubt collect her wash kit. Karl, now alone, leaned back against the sink and wondered what he had seen passing across her eyes. He wondered if she had dreamt about something horrific involving him.

Later that evening at about 0800 hours most of the officers were gathered in the Rec room, enjoying a couple of games of triad and drinking lots of ambrosia. Karl sat at a table watching Kara who was sitting alone at another table, staring at an untouched glass of ambrosia in front of her. It was as if she was willing herself not to grab it and swig it down with one gulp.

The room was loud, full of pilot banter and the talk wireless blaring away. Karl rolled his eyes as the newly inaugurated President Baltar gave his speech to the press. Two weeks before a group of raptors went out with Sharon on board, in order to experiment with FTL jump technology. They were hoping that Sharon could provide a way for the fleet to make longer jumps, maybe even jump back to the Colonies with only ten jumps. Racetrack and Skulls' jump went awry and they had ended up going beyond a gas cloud, which was hiding a small planet able to sustain the colonists. Baltar had made it the head of his campaign, the promise of a new home, hope and a future on the inappropriately named New Caprica. The planet was nothing like the original Colony; its weather systems were a lot more temperate, evidence indicated cold winters and mild to warm summers, nothing like the blazing heat that beat down on Caprica seventy percent of the year. After a long election Baltar had won and now he was in Galactica's press room crowing in his victory. Karl did not know the man well, having only really met him on the day of the attacks. He had given Baltar his seat, a decision he had regretted a few days later, but now looked upon as the best choice he had ever made. Had he acted differently he would not have found _his_ Sharon and he would not have had his daughter for the precious few hours that she lived.

"Mr President," said one of the reporters over the radio. "Former President Roslin held a policy of keeping the press in the dark about a number of issues, what is your stance going to be?"

"Unlike my predecessor," started Baltar in his usual arrogant way. "I intend to be open with the members of the fleet and that includes full reports on my dealings with Commander Adama and the rest of the military."

A loud noise, along the lines of "shut the frak up" was hurled across the Rec room by a number of pilots who obviously disagreed with Baltar's new policy.

"Frakking Baltar doesn't know what he's talking about," shouted out another pilot who then lit up a stogie.

"Put that frakking stogie out Knuckles," shouted out Kara over her shoulder.

"We can't even smoke anymore Sir?" shouted back the pilot.

"Not if you don't want my foot up your ass," replied Kara and then she continued to stare at her glass.

Kat made a tutting noise from next to Karl, "she thinks she owns the frakking room."

"That's enough Kat."

"Why?" replied Kat looking like she was ready for an argument.

"Sssh Kat, drop it," whispered Hotdog.

"Why?" whispered back Kat, "what's her problem?"

"Didn't you hear about what Private Fox overhead?"

"No, I've been pulling triple CAPs for the past five weeks."

Karl rolled his eyes knowing that it was fruitless to try and stop the gossip, "take it somewhere else Hotdog."

Hotdog ignored him however and leaned in towards Kat, "apparently Starbuck had a run in with the Commander when she was in hack and confessed that he's going to be granddaddy."

"No frakking way!" shouted out Kat and slapped the table with a loud whoop. "I bet Duck twenty cubits that it was him."

Karl waited for the fallout, but it didn't come. Kara merely kicked out the chair next to her, which made Hotdog jump out of his skin, and then rested her feet onto the seat seeming to ignore the gossip. She must be getting used to it he thought, and then thought that it was a very frakked up thing to get used to. Karl blocked out Kat and Hotdog's chatter and continued to listen to Baltar; it was only a small reprieve.

"Mr President," said another reporter. "We understand that the Gemenese community made numerous attempts with former President Roslin to identify a woman in the fleet who is pregnant with twins, claiming that the babies are special and need protection?"

Karl winced, he had heard this rumour. He looked over at Kara who was still focused on the glass and unfazed by what was being said. The rest of the room however, had gone completely silent. They had all heard the rumours, even Kara had joked about it once, but until now no-one had really taken it seriously, mainly because it had never been broadcast to the entire fleet before.

"Ah yes," said Baltar, the arrogant tone resounding throughout the Rec room. "I am very privileged to actually know the impending mother."

This time Kara seemed to react and lifted her feet back to the floor looking decidedly annoyed.

"Yes," continued Baltar in response to another question. "The woman in question is a pilot on board the Galactica, Captain Thrace, and the father is the late Major Adama."

"Motherfrakker!!" shouted out Kara and grabbed her glass of ambrosia, chucking it hard at the wireless, which she of course hit squarely smashing the glass. She then pushed herself out of her chair and stormed out of the room.

The contents of the glass had coated several of the pilots in warm ambrosia, and the wireless might never play again, but they were all frozen to their seats including Karl. He knew that it was useless to go after her, knowing that if she didn't want to be found he would not find her. Karl walked out of the silent room to go and visit Sharon, perhaps she might be able to think of a plan to get his best friend back amongst the pilots.

* * *

_Caprica_

It was 0100 hours when Anders liaised with Showboat as planned. It was now dark but the moon lit up the woman like a beacon. She signalled silently for him to follow her down through the woods where the ship was waiting. Anders acquiesced and followed her, leading a small group of four children and ten adults with him. The children were excited and one started to giggle. Anders stopped and turned to them, holding his finger to his lips to tell them to be quiet. The smallest child laughed again before placing her hand in front of her mouth.

They had been performing the same routine every couple of nights for weeks, bringing down survivors in the dark as Lee created a distraction at their destination. Fortunately at night the ship was not heavily guarded and it was relatively easy to sneak people on board. Lee would then guide the new arrivals to the lower part of the ship's hull, below where the Tylium was refined, and hide them in a locked storage bay. The conditions were not great, with no beds and limited food rations, but it was better than being left on Caprica waiting for the radiation meds to wear off.

Lee was waiting as he always did, sullen and deep in concentration. He signalled across to the approaching Showboat to tell her that the coast was clear. Anders then ran across to the ship with the stowaways in his wake and then quickly ran on board.

"Where's the fourth kid?" whispered Lee angrily.

Anders looked round suddenly realising that the smallest child had gone. "Frak," he whispered. "She must have run off."

"Godsdammit," muttered Lee and ran away from the ship with Anders in tow. "We've got ten minutes before the guards come back so lets' start looking and fast. What's her name?"

"Kia, she's only four."

"Right," was all Lee replied as they ran into the woods.

It was clear to Anders that Lee was angry but they worked together to scour the woods finally finding the child sitting on a log in a clearing. Despite only having minutes to spare, Lee flung his gun and helmet into Ander's arms nearly knocking the wind out of him. Lee then approached the little girl with caution, crouching down in front of her.

"You gave us the slip there," he said with a smile but the girl didn't respond. "How bout I show you around your new home?"

Despite his apparent confidence, Anders guessed that Lee had not interacted with children much and that he was nervous.

The little girl sucked her thumb before saying in a muffled voice, "I don't wanna go on the ship, it's dark and it smells bad."

Lee scrunched up his nose, "yeah I don't like the smell either, but I tell you what, all your friends are going to be there and they'll have to smell it too. I bet that you're braver than anyone on that ship." The girl nodded her head. "And I bet that as soon as you're with your friends you'll forget all about the smell."

Again the girl nodded and held out her arms. Lee smiled and then lifted the girl onto his hip and made his way quickly out of the woods. As he passed Anders he gestured for him to follow, which he did without hesitation.

Fortunately the guards were still absent from their posts. The three dark figures managed to run across the clearing, the moonlight lighting their path. They then took the child to her new home. The ship was dark and pokey and the girl had been right about the smell. But Lee had also been right, as soon as Kia was placed on the floor she was running around with the others as if they had been living there forever. Anders envied the way that children were unaffected by the world around them, completely content with everything.

He had been so busy watching the happy scene he missed that Lee had already disappeared, like he always did. Anders walked off the ship, careful to avoid any of the returned guards. He decided to walk the arduous journey back up to the top of Megara and sure enough the solitary Captain was sitting back on his rock looking out over Eretria.

Anders turned to walk away but stopped himself, "you did a good job there, with the kid."

"Did you know that I puked right over by that tree after racing my brother and Kara from my mother's home to the top of the hill," said Lee gesturing to a large tree to the side of the rock.

Anders didn't know what to say in response. As far as he had been concerned, Lee knew Kara from being stationed together on the Galactica. It was a kick in the gut to find out that he had known her for what sounded like a long time before the attacks.

"Zak had challenged Kara one morning to a race to the top," said Lee with a small laugh. "She had taken up the challenge without hesitation, goading him that she would win with her eyes shut. I had just eaten a full breakfast but Kara dared me to go with them, practically dragged me out of the door." Lee laughed again, obviously enjoying the memory.

"Who won?" asked Anders, only half wanting to know the answer.

"Me of course, I used to run that hill every morning when I was training up for the academy. It was only when I reached the top that my breakfast caught up with me. Kara was in hysterics, like it was the funniest thing she had ever seen."

Anders didn't respond, imagining Kara laughing. He felt the jealously strike through him that this man had known her before the end of the worlds. "How long have you known Kara?" asked Anders, again not sure he wanted to know the answer.

Lee ignored him, smiling at the now destroyed view, but obviously smiling at the memory. He then stood up and started to walk down the hill towards the Tylium ship. Half way down the hill he turned back, "about four years, she was engaged to my brother."

Anders held Lee's gaze for a moment before the Captain turned away, this time without looking back. _Engaged to his brother!?_ _Now I'm really confused. _He walked down the hill following in his rival's wake, thinking that he had walked blindly into the middle of something and he really didn't know what the frak was going on.

* * *

_Battlestar Galactica_

Karl knew that he was taking a risk but he didn't care as he collared Kara in the head two days after the ambrosia incident and led her down the corridors.

"Where the frak are you taking me Helo?" she asked.

Karl noticed that she seemed better today, more like the old Starbuck, and she had slept through the night without waking everyone else up. "We've got your new room ready."

"Yeah I know, the old man told me yesterday. It's just a larger room with a shower."

"Come on," said Karl taking her arm and leading her round the corner. After the incident two days ago Karl knew that he needed to do something. Kara was getting bigger and bigger by the day and inevitably the day would come when there would be two mini-Starbucks in the fleet. As far as Karl was aware, Kara was spending all her time preparing herself for the birth but she had no idea what to do afterwards. It had been the same for him with Hera.

After the last corridor they came to the family quarters and stopped outside a door.

"Wow, it's a hatch, I've never seen one of those before," joked Kara.

Karl gave her a disapproving look, "close your eyes."

"What? No way Helo, you know I don't like surprises."

Karl laughed, remembering that she didn't even like gifts on her birthday. In fact it was only by accident that he had found out that it was her birthday in the first place. "Fine, have it your way," he said playfully and opened the hatch. The room was large with two doors leading off to a second room and a small bathroom. It looked bland and nothing special but Karl led Kara through to the second room.

Kara smiled immediately when she saw the work that had been done.

They had erected two cots in the room complete with some blankets and each had hanging mobiles of little model vipers and raptors above them. Kara pointed to two matching bouncing chairs set out on the floor, "Where the frak did you get those?"

"Courtesy of the deck crew. The Chief made them out of some material and spare parts." Which was an understatement, they were like a work of art. "Um, we also managed to gather a few items of clothing, some blankets, bottles, they're all in the boxes," said Karl gesturing to the corner.

"This is too much Helo, why?"

Karl shrugged, "perhaps people actually care about you."

Kara didn't respond instead she went over to the boxes and started rummaging, "who got all the pink stuff?"

"I think that was our former President," replied Karl laughing. "She's convinced you're going to have two girls."

Kara laughed back, "even if they are, none of my offspring are going to look pink and fluffy."

"She got the best stuff though. I don't know how she managed to get it all."

Kara stopped rummaging and sat back on the floor resting her hand on her stomach, "do you think we'll ever see him again?"

"Who?" replied Karl slightly confused.

"Lee."

"Do you?"

"Yep, I have no doubt about that," replied Kara, which shocked Karl. He had no idea that she had such faith in seeing Lee again, thinking that she had been mourning his death all this time. "How the frak am I going to tell him about this?"

"I really don't know," said Karl not knowing what else to say.

"Where _did _you get all this stuff anyway?" asked Kara, turning the conversation back to the boxes.

"The clothes were mainly Roslin and the old man. Hotdog and Kat went and played a long game of triad on Cloud Nine and won this," said Karl and then handed over a package to Kara.

She opened it eagerly finding an old camera inside, "seriously?" she said, obviously shocked by the gift.

"On the one condition that Constanza gets to take a picture of you at this size for posterity."

"Frakker," replied Kara and then laughed.

"What's so funny?"

"Look at me Helo; I could make a small hole in the hull."

Karl then joined in the laughter, but not really knowing what he was laughing about. They then both sat there in Kara's new quarters talking about nothing in particular, just enjoying their solitude.

* * *

_Battlestar Pegasus_

Cain overlooked the dradis screen as the Pegasus jumped away from the last Colony. Her plans had gone perfectly, the cylons were gone and she had managed to obtain numerous resources from the remaining Colonies. There hadn't been much of anything but they had managed to salvage a Tylium ship and some weaponry. They had also managed to gather about three hundred able-bodied men and women to add to her crew and about fifty crewmen to work on the Tylium ship. Cain had been shocked by the number of survivors still alive on the various planets, however they had only found people on Aerlon, Caprica and Libron. The rest were completely devastated. Most of the useful survivors had been found on Caprica, including a Pyramid team. Cain had made them all into marines and deck crew for the time being until she could decide if they had the ability to become pilots.

She looked across the CIC briefly at one of her new marines, who stood alert with his gun at his side. They would never be as good as her own crew, no matter how much she trained them. _All _of the people she had salvaged along the way would never be military.

Captain Kendra Shaw walked over to Cain and saluted sharply, "the ship is ready to start jumping Sir, just give the order."

"Thank you Captain, back to your post," replied Cain. Shaw obeyed and turned immediately, walking back to her consol as Cain turned her attention back to the dradis monitor.

Later that day Cain made her way down to the hangar deck, where numerous raptors were still being unloaded of the hefty cargo they had gathered from the Colonies. Lee was heading the operation, guiding people to where they should be going as Cain watched from the balcony area. She still had her reservations about Lee Adama but he had performed well on Caprica and she was willing to give him more responsibility, maybe even promote him to Major. She was, however, still uncertain about Lee's mental state, having tried on numerous occasions to contact him when he was on Caprica, knowing that her men were lying about him always being out on his mission, but Cain had decided not to make it an issue.

Another raptor was brought into the hangar, which Cain understood contained some men from the Tylium ship who she thought would make better additions to her own crew. They may not be good soldiers but they could be utilised elsewhere. She watched as one by one the men left the raptor and walking down the wing.

It was as that moment when all hell broke loose.

Cain heard a yell from across the hangar deck, but she could not make out the words. Suddenly Lee had run across to the raptor, his gun raised at one of the new arrivals.

"Hands in the air!" shouted the Captain fiercely. "Now!"

A man wearing a hat slowly raised his hands and looked down from the wing at Lee. "What seems to be the problem here?" he asked in a voice that seemed to irate Lee further.

"Get down on the floor now!"

Cain watched the scene intently from above. The marines on the deck followed Lee's lead and aimed their guns at the unarmed man, but no-one seemed to be taking the next step. Cain decided that she had seen enough and shouted down from the balcony, "What's going on Captain?"

Everyone on the deck apart from Lee, who was focused solely on his target, looked up towards her.

"He's a frakking a toaster Sir."

The man in the hat just stared down at the Captain, not refuting the allegation.

"Are you sure?" asked Cain making her way to the ladder that led down to the deck.

"Pretty frakking positive," spat out Lee, the hatred in his voice evident. "I saw him on the baseship, he tortured me and..."

"Well my brothers didn't do a very good job did they," said the cylon in a sarcastic tone of voice.

Cain had heard enough, and ordered the shocked marines to take the toaster away and put him in a cell next to the other one. She then walked up to Lee, "good job Captain."

"Thank you Sir," said Lee without much conviction behind his words. "What are you going to do with him?"

"It Captain, what am I going to do with it?"

"Sorry Sir, what are you going to do with it," he repeated without concern.

"We will get information out of it, and if it resists then we'll make it talk. After we have all we need it'll be flushed out of the nearest airlock as I doubt any of the crew would want to play with it."

Cain watched for Lee's reaction, wanting him to volunteer to be the interrogator, to get his revenge. But Cain was bitterly disappointed. The Captain only looked broken as he saluted and walked back across the deck to carry on deploying his supplies.

Cain sighed to herself in defeat and walked away from the deck deep in thought.

_One day I will get to him and only then will he truly become a member of my crew._

**AN: sorry for the delay I had a serious case of writer's block this week, nothing like seeing Jamie Bamber to bring the muse back! The good news is that due to my writer's block I started writing the next chapter instead, so shouldn't be long before an update.**


	26. Welcome to the World

Chapter 25

**AN: Told you the update wouldn't be long, and when I got writing I found I couldn't stop! (Remember that I'm not a doctor ****)**

_The waves of pain shattered her body as the lashes struck her over and over again. The agony so intense that she did not know what reality was anymore. The darkness would envelope her for a few blissful fleeting moments only to be brought screaming back to the pain. Back to the eyes that watched her and the soul within them dying with each stroke. _

Kara awoke suddenly from her nightmare and attempted to throw herself out of her bunk, but her protruding belly kept her flat on her back. A sharp pain resonated through her back from the sudden movement and her heart was racing. Every night she would dream of what happened on the baseship. Sometimes the dreams were less vivid or would involve the period of time when she had been left on her own without food, to get weaker every day. All she would hear were the sounds of pain coming from Lee far away and the occasional coo in her ear when Leoben came to her.

Sweat trickled down Kara's brow as she remembered her captivity. Adama had made her go back to the counsellor twice weekly and she had started to open up, telling him about the parts that were less painful to remember.

"_They would keep me in the dark," she had said, not able to meet his gaze. "Sometimes they would put a bag over my head so I couldn't see anything. I don't know why."_

"_Maybe to protect their identity?" said Cavil, in his usual irritating voice that seemed to be a statement of fact rather than mere supposition. "You have said previously that you recognised the models that held you; perhaps the others feared you might recognise them again."_

"_Perhaps," replied Kara. Even though she saw the sense in Cavil's words there was something untrustworthy in the way he said them. _

Kara wiped the sweat away from her brow and cursed under her breath. Every night after seeing Cavil she would have some of her most vivid nightmares, which was extremely infuriating, but she still hoped that it would get better.

Kara rolled herself up on her bunk so that she was in a sitting position. The bed in her new quarters was made for two so there was a lot more space to manoeuvre. The babies were however still using her body as a punching bag causing her to need the toilet for the third time that night.

It seemed to take Kara forever to pull herself to standing and waddle out to her bathroom. She was huge and Cottle estimated that she was now about 38 weeks gone. So much for being "likely to give birth early" thought Kara. Her feet were swollen and she was feeling more and more uncomfortable with each passing day. To make matters worse her back was killing her and tonight it was worse than ever. Kara looked in the mirror, above the wash basin she could barely reach, and cringed at her exorbitant size.

As she leaned over the basin to wash her face a sharp pain struck through her.

"Oh Frak," she said rubbing her back, unsure if she was getting pain from her scars, like she did sometimes, or whether the babies were trying to tell her something. Kara wasn't going to leave anything to chance so she made her way down the agonisingly long corridors until she reached lifestation.

"Doc," she called out loudly when she arrived before seating herself gently onto one of the beds. A few minutes later a very disgruntled looking and half asleep Cottle came out of his room and approached her bed.

"This better be frakking important Captain, to get me out of bed at 0600," said the doctor grumpily.

"I'm getting pain down my back doc; I think it might be finally time."

"Okay, lie back, and let's take a look," replied Cottle, "How many times have you felt a contraction?"

Kara realised she didn't know, her dream had been so intense that she wasn't sure if she had had more than one. "I'm not sure."

"Right," said the Cottle in a sighing voice. "I'll keep you on a foetal monitor for a few hours, see if there's any activity. Sit tight Captain, you're going to be a here a while."

Cottle then walked away leaving Kara to stare up at the ceiling, feeling her babies kicking inside.

* * *

_Lifestation – four hours later and frakking nothing to show for it_

Kara was furious with herself, she had been lying on the lifestation bed for four hours now and there were no signs of any more contractions. She had panicked when the pain had shot through her in the head and like an idiot thought that she must be in labour. As if it was going to be that simple. She was now sitting up, her tail between her legs, as Cottle removed the monitoring equipment.

"It happens to most first time mothers," he said in the nicest bedside voice he could muster. "This may be the start of your delivery so take it easy today. Towards the end of pregnancy a lot of women get false labour pains. If the pain becomes frequent or at regular intervals or if your waters break then you come straight back here, got that?"

"Yes doc," replied Kara with a deep sigh.

"Everything okay?"

"No it's not frakking okay. I'm the size of a raptor, my feet are swollen and I can only frakking waddle down the corridor," replied Kara, clearly infuriated and uncomfortable, before mumbling, "This is his frakking fault; there are no frakking twins on my side."

"Actually your carrying fraternal twins," replied Cottle with a smile. "That means they're from two different eggs, which makes it your fault I'm afraid."

"Yeah, well, trust Lee to hit the mark twice," muttered Kara, refraining from rolling her eyes, and hugging her stomach.

"It won't be long, and then you can have two screaming babies to take care of."

"Frakking doctors," said Kara under her breath as she waddled out of the lifestation and towards her rack.

* * *

Of all the frakking things Kara could be made to do at the moment, the thought of having a formal dinner with the old man, the former President and the XO with wife in tow, was the worst. To make matters even worse her dress greys couldn't fit, and her feet were about to fall off. She had also been getting some more intermittent pains throughout the day, but nothing remotely regular, so Kara had put it down to more false labour.

"Frakking formal dinners," she cursed, squeezing into her duty blues. _These will have to do _she thought. Kara had spent the previous evening re-sewing on her buttons in order to make her tunic stretch further, which had involved numerous needle pricks and lots of cursing.

When Kara reached Adama's quarters she felt completely underdressed in her blues as the Commander and XO were in their greys, but no-one seemed to dare make a comment. Roslin looked relaxed and less stressed at being away from Colonial One and Kara had heard that she was settling down on the planet. Her former aide Billy was also there, but he was quietly sat in the corner.

The dinner was like most formal dinners for Kara, keeping her mouth shut and only answering questions when asked. It reminded her of the disastrous meal she had had with Lee's mother and her family; they had grilled her for hours about her entire life. Thankfully tonight most of the questions aimed at her involved the babies and how she was doing. Kara had politely responded before sitting back to watch Tigh and his wife get progressively drunker and drunker. Ellen could hardly keep her hands off the XO, which was making Kara feel decidedly sick, especially as she was sitting directly opposite.

Billy also looked uncomfortable as he too was sat opposite the nauseating display. Ellen then started to flirt relentlessly with him, but it was Kara who found herself jumping in her seat as a foot connected itself with her leg and worked its way up. She couldn't help the shocked look that came over her face and the babies started kicking back in protest. Kara remembered back to a flushed and shocked looking Lee after a dinner with Ellen Tigh, it had taken her ages to wrangle out of him what had happened, after which she couldn't stop laughing.

"Um," said Kara trying her most tactful tone. "Ellen, it's not that I'm not flattered or anything but your foot is putting additional pressure on my already over-squashed bladder. Billy's lap is that way," she said pointing towards the unfortunate man.

Roslin choked slightly on her wine and had to look away to stop herself laughing at Kara's flat request.

"Oops silly me," said Ellen drunkenly, holding onto Tigh keenly with one arm. A few seconds later there came a bash under the table as Billy's knee flew upwards. Tigh didn't do anything except laugh at his wife's antics, the alcohol obviously numbing his senses.

Kara longed for a drink too, needed it, and wanted it to numb the screaming that echoed through her mind every day. It would be so easy to grab the bottle and wash away all of her anger, guilt and pain until she sobered up, in which case she would do it all over again. Kara stroked her stomach tenderly; they were the reason why she resisted the easy way out. She would never hurt them the way that Carolanne had hurt Lee. Kara had seen the pain that the drinking had caused to him and she would not be that weak. She would be strong for their children, even if she would never be the ideal mother, Kara would give them that gift.

"Don't you two look so cute," said Ellen downing more ambrosia from a bottle and bringing Kara's attention back to the table.

"Sorry?" asked Kara, unsure if she had heard her correctly.

"You two," she said pointing across the table. Kara's eyes widened at the implication, she would squish a kid like Billy Keikeya. "And you're going to have a baby."

Billy coughed into his glass causing water to splash everywhere.

"Well I think that concludes dinner," said Adama taking a large gulp of his glass of wine.

Ellen and Tigh both stood, giggling their heads off and staggering out of the room. They were so drunk that they forgot to say goodbye to anyone, but they did remember to take the bottle of ambrosia with them.

The four remaining occupants of the table sat for a few moments before bursting out laughing. The conversation turned more civilised, focusing on the state and politics of the fleet and how well New Caprica was developing. Kara phased out through most of the chatter, she was uncomfortable, her back was still killing her, and she was beginning to fidget.

"Are you okay Captain?" asked Roslin with a smile.

"Just damn uncomfortable Madam... um"

"Just call me Laura," Roslin replied knowing that Kara had only ever referred to her as Madam President, a person she no longer was. "Come and take a seat on the couch and put your feet up." She then rose from her chair and gestured over towards the lounge area. Kara followed without protest, thinking of the blissful release to her swollen feet. Roslin helped her down onto the couch and fluffed two pillows at the other end, which Kara proceeded to rest her feet upon. Adama and Billy continued to talk at the table.

"How are you doing?" asked Roslin standing next to her.

"I'll be better once they're out," replied Kara stroking her stomach.

"I know you must have heard the rumours around the fleet..."

"Yes, _Baltar _announced it over the talk wireless."

"I know you believe in the scriptures..."

"It's not scripture, it's an old Gemenese story that none of the Colonies follow," interrupted Kara.

"Have you read it?"

"My mother made me read all of the Gemenese stories over and over. I didn't believe in them then and I don't believe in them now," replied Kara only half meaning what she said. The stories had always fascinated her as a child but she would not pay them any more credence then she already did.

For the rest of the evening there was general chatter between the four remaining guests and it was only when Kara fell asleep on the couch that Roslin and Billy decided it would be best to retire to their guest quarters. They were due to move down to New Caprica within the next week.

After they left Adama found himself standing next to Kara and looking down as she seemed to sleep peacefully, holding her stomach protectively. _Protecting his grandchildren. _Since reuniting in the Ready room, Kara had often spent her spare time with him. Adama still felt guilty for his actions and wanted to keep Kara close to him, to do anything he could to make sure she was okay.

As he watched Adama remembered fondly back to a few weeks previously when Kara had spent the evening in his quarters, reminiscing about life on board the Galactica before the attacks. He had then brought out a box that had been with him for a long time.

"_What's in there?" asked Kara looking at the box with curiosity._

"_Open it up and see."_

_Kara opened the box that contained what appeared to be a collection of aging belongings. At the top was a book, which upon opening Kara discovered was Lee's baby album. She looked briefly at the pages but the ache to her heart was too much, so she placed it to the side._

"_You can take anything you want," said Adama. "I kept a lot of stuff over the years that could be useful."_

_Kara smiled and continued to rummage, finding numerous little baby outfits and bibs that had obviously been well worn, but after a good wash could be reusable. "Does Lee know you have all this?"_

"_No he didn't," replied Adama, noting Kara's use of the present tense._

"_What the frak is this?" asked Kara jokingly, as she pulled out an object that had once been a white bunny teddy bear but now resembled something more akin to road kill._

"_Lee used to take that with him everywhere," said Adama smiling. "He visited me on board a Battlestar once, I forget which one, and left it behind. By the time I saw him again he had forgotten all about it. I've kept hold of it ever since." _

_Kara placed the rabbit carefully back in the box and then brought out the last item, which was two pieces of paper covered in names._

"_Carolanne and I argued for ages about names and that was the shortlist."_

_Kara read through the list noting that Leland was at the top. She couldn't help but cringe at the top girl's name, "thank the gods you had a son."_

Kara stirred suddenly, pulling Adama out of his reverie.

"Frak, sorry Sir," said Kara sitting herself up. "How long was I out?"

"Not long, Laura and Billy only just left."

"I should be going too."

Adama held out his hand and helped Kara to stand up. They said their goodnights and Kara waddled back to her quarters. It was only 1000 hours and the ship was still quite active so she passed many people on the way, including Cavil who gave her a wry smile. Kara did not want to stop and talk to him so she nodded her head in recognition and carried on walking.

The pain still resonated through her body, but thankfully felt slightly better once she was in her bed and quickly drifted off to sleep.

* * *

It was at about 0300 hours when Kara was awoken by a sharp pain cutting through her, which was much more intense than before. Kara gripped at her back hoping to dull the pain and remembered what Cottle had told her. She made a note of the time on her watch and then lay back onto the bed and waited. Sure enough twenty minutes later another sharp pain struck.

_This has to be it _thought Kara and pushed her legs over the side of the bed and pulled on her slacks and a second tank. She then left her quarters and started making her way towards lifestation at a slow waddle. Kara decided to take a small detour around the ship in order to make sure that this time the contractions were for real. As the fourth contraction hit at 17 minutes past the third, Kara decided it was time to haul ass to lifestation.

Despite waiting for this moment for what seemed like forever, Kara wasn't sure if she could go through with it. The pain was easy to handle, but was she ready to be a mother? Kara didn't know if she would ever be ready.

As she walked through the memorial corridor Kara had to stop for a moment as another contraction hit, 15 minutes this time. She found herself staring at Lee's picture as she breathed through the pain. Someone had replaced the original picture with one of Lee lighting up a cigar after the successful Tylium mission. He had gloated relentlessly for at least a week after that mission, but only to irritate her, it had worked.

Kara smiled at the memory and rubbed her stomach.

"Walking the corridors late at night aren't you Captain?" said a voice from behind, which made the hairs on Kara's arm and neck stand on end. She was frozen to the spot with dread, memories of the accented voice flooding through her, one of the voices that had haunted her dreams but she had been unable to identify.

And now the voice was behind her.

"What's the matter Captain? You look scared," said the voice again in a piercing tone.

Kara turned around slowly and came face to face with the reporter D'Anna Biers and suddenly placed the voice that had taunted her in the dark. Kara knew that she was in big trouble, heavily pregnant and in labour she had no chance of running away. Now it all depended on what this toaster wanted, did it want to kill her or take her away?

Kara backed slowly away down the deserted and dimly lit corridor biting past another contraction. How many minutes was that?

"Did you have a good time with my brothers and sisters Captain?" asked D'Anna slowly following her prey.

Kara had now backed out of the memorial corridor but there was still no-one around, there rarely was at 0400 hours, which was in the middle of the night shift.

"Now apparently there are many here that consider those babies inside you to be special."

"You stay the frak away from my kids," said Kara holding her stomach protectively.

"Ah, so you do talk, but I don't think you're in a position to protect anything."

"You'll never get me off the ship," said Kara, knowing that with a pregnant hostage it wouldn't be too difficult.

"Who says I want to, perhaps I just want to stick you out of the nearest airlock," replied D'Anna with a nasty smile.

Kara had to do something and now, running and fighting were out of the question, so she would have to do the next best thing, holler and scream until people came running. Kara had now backed into a branching part of the corridor, which was the best place to grab some attention. She was about to start yelling when a hand came up from behind and covered her mouth like a vice. Despite struggling violently, Kara was completely pinned as another arm came round her torso. Now she couldn't even scream but continued to struggle despite protests coming from inside her belly. Kara pushed her foot against the wall shoving her captor backwards into the opposite wall, but the grip did not lessen.

"You took your time," said D'Anna.

Kara's head was pulled backwards over her captor's shoulder, so she could see the face of the man who was meant to be her counsellor. The man she had been revealing her fears and secrets to was a frakking toaster and now they had her trapped.

"I say we just throw her out of the nearest airlock," said Cavil in his usual tone of voice.

"No," said D'Anna. "We need to consult our brothers and sisters first. God chose for these children to be conceived, so we take her with us and shove her out of the airlock once she's given birth."

"The baseship isn't a nursery."

Kara hated that these two toasters were talking about her as if she wasn't even there, deciding her fate and the fates of her children. The contractions were coming thick and fast now and she was breathing heavily.

As the pain rocked through her Kara struggled and then bit down on one of Cavil's fingers as hard as she could. He yelled out in pain and threw Kara away from him sending her crashing to the floor onto her back. Seizing the opportunity she hollered as loud as she could until D'Anna grabbed her by the hair and dragged her back up to standing.

The next few moments were a blur, and later Kara would forget what really happened. A marine, Private Fox, came running around the corner with his gun at the ready. Kara then saw out of the corner of her eye that Cavil was also armed and fired immediately at the shocked marine. Kara kicked out and knocked the cylon's arm, sending the shots awry, hitting the marine only in the leg.

More gunfire then erupted from behind striking down Cavil immediately.

The grip on Kara's hair tightened and she was dragged backwards as a shield, her eyes meeting the gaze of Tigh, who had his gun aimed towards them and looked thankfully sober. Seeing her chance of escape Kara wriggled as much as she could, despite another contraction hitting hard, until D'Anna gave up and dived around a corner.

Kara was finally free but the pain striking through her body was more pronounced this time and she had to lean against the nearest wall for support. Tigh was at her side within seconds, pulling her away from the sound of gunfire that now echoed down the corridor, and lead her through the nearest hatch into a conference room.

"Are you okay?" he asked gruffly.

"Do...I look... frakking okay?" gasped Kara, taking deep breaths between her words.

Finally the contraction eased off, but she suddenly felt another problem, a wet sensation running down her legs.

"What the...?" began Tigh.

"Frak, I think my waters just broke," said Kara gripping the side of her stomach.

"Come on, you need to get to lifestation."

"I can't," said Kara unable to walk, let alone able to make it all the way to lifestation.

Tigh had no idea what to do and had a screaming headache from the previous night's drinking. He was looking for some aspirin when he heard a shot being fired and now he was stuck with a heavily pregnant Starbuck in labour. Tigh would be damned if he was going to deliver them. No longer hearing the sound of gunfire, he risked exiting the room and collared Hotdog who was half undressed.

"Go and get frakking Cottle," shouted out Tigh desperately, but Hotdog seemed frozen to the spot as he saw Kara in obvious labour. "Now godsdammit!"

"Tell him that my waters have broken and the contractions are only minutes apart," said Kara feeling the start of another one.

Hotdog nodded and then sprinted away down the now busy corridor, past the body of D'Anna and entered the lifestation. "Doc!"

He found Cottle helping Private Fox, who looked to be in a lot of pain from his leg injury.

"I'm busy Lieutenant," said Cottle gruffly.

"Sir, Starbuck's gone into labour," said Hotdog out of breath.

Cottle turned quickly with his usual cigarette in his mouth, "then get her the frak here."

"She said to say that her waters have broken and the contractions are minutes apart."

"Frak!" shouted Cottle throwing his cigarette out of his mouth.

"Go on doc, I'll be okay," said Fox wincing.

It was the first time Hotdog had seen the aging doctor run, barking out orders for the nurses to get a birthing area and two cots ready. Within minutes Cottle had reached Kara with two medics hauling a stretcher in his wake. She was quickly placed onto the stretcher despite her protests and wheeled back to the lifestation.

Tigh had quickly absconded to make sure the old man was awake.

It took three people to lift Kara over to the bed and the nurses started make her more comfortable, but Kara was having none of it. She wanted to get far away from everything and everyone but the contractions were hitting hard with only brief moments of reprieve in between.

"Captain," said Cottle who had scrubbed up, "I need to take a look at you, but that's a little difficult with your slacks in the way."

"I can't do this," said Kara. "I can't."

"It's going to happen whether you like it or not, now let me help you."

Kara turned away and saw that Adama had entered the lifestation, before Ishay swung the curtains closed giving her the privacy she needed.

"Captain?" repeated Cottle.

Kara nodded and allowed the nurses to remove her slacks and cover her in a hospital gown. They then coated her in numerous paper blankets to cover her up. By the time the nurses had finished, Kara was sitting, propped up by plenty of pillows, with Ishay supporting her back.

Cottle examined her and gave a small grumble, "how long did you wait to come here? You're fully dilated."

"Sorry doc, I got a bit sidetracked by some toasters," replied Kara gritting her teeth. Sweat was beginning to flow down the sides of her face and she was exhausted, but the babies definitely wanted out of her. "Frak, here comes another one."

"Right this time I need you to push," said Cottle gently.

Kara nodded and pushed down as much as she could until the contraction finished.

"That's it Kara," said Ishay soothingly. "You're doing fantastic."

Kara didn't feel that she was doing fantastically but didn't have the energy to argue back. Instead she leaned back and waited for the next contraction, which came quickly.

The same pattern repeated itself, for how long Kara could not even begin to guess, until finally Cottle said, "You're doing great, now one big push on the next contraction and we'll have the head out."

Kara nodded; she was shaking all over and gripping tightly onto the railings of the bed until the next contraction came and pushed with everything she had left. She felt a sharp burning sensation and bit down on her lip to stop herself from crying out.

"I can see the head," said Ishay with a smile.

Cottle seemed to make a few adjustments before Kara finally felt release, she leaned back gasping just as she heard the gently gurgling cries of her baby. The relief was overwhelming and Kara couldn't stop the tears from flowing at hearing the first cries of her child.

"It's a boy," said Ishay as she held out a blanket and Cottle gently placed the baby inside and passed him straight away into Kara's arms.

Kara stared down intently at her son, so tiny and wrinkled with his eyes tightly shut. "Hey," she said softly, stoking his little hand, not knowing what else to say. The baby made little gurgling sounds in response making Kara smile.

She had never felt so much love for anything in her life.

* * *

Adama was talking to Private Fox, whose leg had now been bandaged up, when he heard the first cries of his grandchild. Cottle then stepped out from behind the curtained off area and smiled at the old man.

"It's a boy, everything looks healthy."

"Can I see them?"

Cottle looked back behind the curtain before gesturing for him to come forward. Kara was inside looking at a small bundle in her arms, a little tiny hand gripped around her finger. She was obviously exhausted with damp hair, but looked overjoyed. Adama walked up and stroked the top of the baby's head, through soft brown hair.

"He's perfect," said Adama with a smile.

"I know," replied Kara and placed a soft kiss to her son's brow, then winced as she felt a contraction hit.

Ishay walked over, "I'm afraid you've still got some work to do, I'll take this little man and clean him up for you." She then scooped up the bundle and walked out of the curtained off area. Kara missed him already.

Adama went to walk away but Kara gripped his arm as she breathed through the contraction. "Do you want me to stay?"

"Please, I can't do this alone."

Adama nodded and stood behind her at the head of the bed and rubbed her back gently to ease the pain. Cottle then came over and placed a foetal monitor over her belly. "You've shrunk down to seven centimetres but it shouldn't be long." He then checked the monitor and frowned.

"What? What is it?" asked Kara slightly panicked.

"The heart rate is dropping slightly."

"What?!"

"Relax Captain this often happens, we're fine as long as the rate stays over 90. If it drops under that I'll have your baby out in less than ten minutes."

Kara leaned her head back and closed her eyes waiting for the next contraction. An hour later and her second baby had not made an appearance and Kara was starting to get a little impatient.

"How much frakking longer doc?

But Cottle didn't get the opportunity to answer as an alarm sounded.

"What's that?" asked Kara as the doctor moved the monitor around on her stomach but still the alarm sounded. "Doc?!"

"Frak, we need to get your baby out of there now," said Cottle seriously and then turned to one of the nurses. "Get her prepped for an emergency c-section."

"Doc?! What the frak is going on?" cried out Kara as the nurse lowered the head of the bed, draped some more paper blankets over her and covered her head in surgical cap. Adama was gripping her hand, only releasing it momentarily as another nurse shoved him into a surgical gown and cap.

"Ten minutes remember," said Cottle as he started to pull the stretcher into the sterile operating room.

Everything was a blur of movement and sounds as she felt a needle and then her body numbed.

"Doc just get my baby out, don't worry about me," said Kara trying to hide the fear in her voice.

"Captain, after this I intend to have two new babies and one mother. I won't settle for anything less."

"It's going to be okay," added Adama, but Kara could see the uncertainty in his eyes.

Kara closed her eyes and said a quiet prayer for her unborn child and her son, pleading with them that they would be okay. She was only vaguely aware of Cottle asking if everything was ready.

Adama still gripped her hand as she prayed and watched as Cottle took his scalpel and cut across her abdomen. He had to look away as Kara's was clamped open, but when he dared to turn back he saw Cottle's arms inside of her. Kara was now watching intently. A few moments later Cottle brought out a small baby, but there was no sound when the placenta was cut.

"It's a girl," said a nurse as Cottle carried the baby straight away over to a small table.

"Why isn't she crying?" asked Kara as the tears started to flow again. "Why is she blue?"

But Cottle was ignoring her, his back hiding the baby. After a few seconds, but what seemed like an eternity, Kara finally heard the blissful sounds of wailing and the look of relief on Cottle's face. A nurse gently wrapped up the little girl and brought her over to Kara's side.

"Hey there," said Kara reaching out and stroking the side of her daughter's face.

"She's beautiful," said Adama trying to hide his emotions.

"I'll clean her up and then you can hold her when Cottle has finished with you," said the nurse.

"Look after them," said Kara to Adama who gave her a kiss on the forehead before following the nurse out of the room.

Kara said a silent thank you to the gods before Cottle came to side. Her last thoughts before everything black were of Lee and their son and daughter.

* * *

It was 0700 hours when Roslin entered lifestation looking tired but relaxed in casual clothing. Her eyes were immediately drawn to Adama, who was standing and looking over two bassinets. Roslin smiled warmly and walked over to see the two new additions to the fleet, placing her hand gently on Adama's shoulder.

The babies were sleeping soundly, wrapped in matching blankets and hats with little tufts of brown hair sticking out at the side.

"Oh Bill, they're beautiful," she said and gently stroked the foot of the nearest baby who squirmed slightly and let out a little gurgle. "Boys or girls?"

"One of each," replied Adama with a smile.

"How's Kara?"

"She's fine; this little girl didn't want to come out so Cottle had to perform a caesarean. Kara came out of surgery about fifteen minutes ago and should be fine. I'll take the little ones through as soon as she wakes up."

"I was awoken by the sound of gunfire, what happened?"

Adama frowned and stepped away from the bassinets, "we found two more cylons hiding in the fleet, brother Cavil and D'Anna Biers."

"What? We sent her on board to film your crew, we trusted her."

"She must have stowed away on board after Baltar's press conference. We don't know what they wanted with Starbuck but they accosted her last night. Fortunately Tigh managed to take Cavil down and my marines killed D'Anna."

"Will they download?"

"Unlikely with the interference surrounding New Caprica. Cavil is still alive and currently sitting in the nearest airlock."

Roslin nodded and then walked over to the bassinets again. It wasn't her place to comment anymore about Adama's tactics. She looked down at the sleeping babies and smiled, hoping that they really held the key to the future safety of the fleet.

* * *

When Kara awoke she was exhausted and ached everywhere and it was an effort to push herself into a sitting position. Despite her tiredness she couldn't help the feeling of impatience at wanting to hold her children. She smiled widely when nurse Ishay entered her curtained off bed carrying a small bundle and Adama followed with another.

"Someone here wants to meet you," said Ishay and handed over the small bundle containing a sleeping baby.

Kara held her daughter in the crook of her arm and stroked her cheek gently before placing a kiss to her brow. There were no words to describe what she was feeling.

Ishay left and Adama sat on the side of the bed gently rocking his grandson before looking up at Kara.

"You did good," he said.

"They did all the work," said Kara smiling. "What happened about the..."

"You don't need to worry about them," replied Adama.

"I'm sorry I couldn't remember... I couldn't place their voices."

"That doesn't matter now," said Adama bouncing his grandson gently, before placing him in Kara's lap so that he was nestled comfortably against a cushion on top of her legs. Kara then placed her daughter next to her son so that her children were both together and looking up at their mother. It was the first time that their eyes had opened, and even though most babies had blue eyes, Kara couldn't help but see their father reflected in them.

"What these babies need are some names," said Adama. "Have you been thinking of any?"

"I have," replied Kara. Every night she had been agonising on which names to choose, trying to guess what Lee would want. "I want to name them after their father."

"You don't have any family names?"

"Not that I want to use," said Kara and then held her son's little hand. "For this little guy how about Joseph William?"

"I like it, and for your little girl?"

"Selena Tamara?"

Adama smiled at the use of his late sister as a middle name, "Selena? I've heard that name before."

"It was on your list of girl names for Lee, about half way down."

"It's perfect, little Lena."

After a few moments Kara looked up at Adama, "Can I have a moment alone with them?"

"Of course," replied Adama with a warm smile. He walked over to Kara's side and stroked the heads of his grandchildren before giving her a soft kiss to the top of her head.

Kara waited a few moments to make sure Adama had gone before smiling down at her children. They looked back at her, their eyes scrunched up but focused on her face, their little hands curled around Kara's fingers.

"Hi," said Kara softly, knowing that at only a few hours old her babies would not remember or understand anything, but the words still needed to be said.

"Um, I don't really know how to say all of this," she began. "I've practised this moment over and over again before you were born, but... I can't... I wish you were born into a perfect world and I wish I could promise to be with you at every moment, but I can't. You were born into a lost world that your mum has to fight through each day as part of her job. So I can't promise that I will live to see you grow up. Good news is that your mum can fly circles around everyone, including your dad, and I will always fight with everything I have to make sure that I do come back to you. And no matter what happens, I will always love you both." Kara felt the tears pooling in her eyes as she spoke, and her babies seemed to grip her fingers harder. Her voice croaked slightly from the emotion as she continued, "I... you should know that your mum is a professional frak up, so be patient with me, but I promise that I will never hurt you and I will never be like _her_."

The tears started flowing down her cheeks as she got to the most difficult part, "your father is alive out there somewhere. I can feel him, and if he knew about you, he would have done anything to be here right now. And when he does find you, he will love you so much, we both will, together."

_Together, _thought Kara as she gently rocked their son and daughter to sleep. _We will be together again, maybe not today, but soon._

"Welcome to the world Selena and Joseph Adama," said Kara as they closed their little eyes.

* * *

_Battlestar Pegasus_

That morning Lee had awoken suddenly, but this time it wasn't due to a nightmare. He couldn't remember the dream, but a blissful calm resonated throughout his body, making him feel like he had slept for weeks and for the first time he felt awake. Even though today was just another day, Lee knew in his soul that everything had changed.

Later that day as Lee entered the CIC he still felt as if he was floating.

"Are we ready to input our new co-ordinates?" asked Shaw.

"Sorry?" asked Lee only half aware that she was there.

"You gave us a set of co-ordinates that you believe the Galactica was following, are you ready to input them into the FTL drive?"

"No," said Lee suddenly, knowing somehow that he would never see Kara again if he went that way.

"No?"

"No, we're going the wrong way, we need to change course," said Lee desperately and then ran over towards the star-charts that were spread out on top of one of the consols.

_He would find her, whatever it takes he would find her and never let her go again._

**AN(2): I know from some of your reviews that a lot of you were hoping that Lee would make it back for the birth. I have known since the beginning of writing this story that he wouldn't and I have my reasons for doing so. It also gives me an excuse to get them to do it again maybe ;)**

**Don't worry there will be a reunion – and soon.**


	27. Found

Chapter 26

**AN: This is a sort of bridging chapter between the first and second parts of the story. I wasn't originally planning on writing it in parts but this seemed a good point to put in a transitional chapter – so there will be a bit of time jumping : -)**

Kara cursed as the nebula interfered with her dradis consol and just about every other computer system in her small viper. The Commander would have her ass for flying too near to the cloud formation, after the last time they had lost her completely from their dradis in the CIC, causing a small panic. But the routine CAPs were so boring now that the fleet had settled on New Caprica, so the only excitement could come from the turbulence of a nebula cloud.

Kara was just enjoying the gentle rocking motion, when through the static on her consol she saw a small blip marked "unknown."

"Frak. Galactica, Starbuck we have an identified ship up on dradis, do I have permission to follow?"

"Starbuck, Galactica," said the old man over the comm. "We can't see it here, are you sure?"

"Positive sir, there's definitely something alive in there. It's not flashing up as toaster."

There was a pause before Adama's voice came back sounding annoyed, "You're to go in and have a look only, and I mean only a look. If it's a toaster we can't risk being detected."

"Copy that Galactica," replied Kara and then flipped her viper towards the nebula.

The turbulence bounced her ship around as she headed for the blip, the visibility was poor and Kara found herself cursing loudly.

Suddenly the blip was no longer there and she saw nothing ahead.

"Where the frak did you go?" muttered Kara.

Suddenly the blip appeared back on the dradis, but this time it was behind her.

"What the frak?" exclaimed Kara and then flipped her viper end on end. As she was heading for the blip another one suddenly appeared onto the consol, coming from where the last blip had disappeared. "Oh frak me."

Kara had lost communication with Galactica and she was alone in a nebula, with next to useless dradis, and unknown targets surrounding her. If they were toasters, then she was probably frakked. Kara stared down at her consol where she had a stuck a picture of her babies, huddled together and smiling. She stroked the picture and then flipped her viper over again.

Kara was certain of one thing; she would not allow anything that could harm her children get close to the Galactica.

Her viper closed in quickly towards the target, struggling to see what was in front of her. She suddenly pulled hard over on her stick in an attempt to anticipate where the ship was going.

The glow from three engines blasted across the nose of her viper.

"Frak!" she shouted out and rolled to the side to avoid a collision. Whatever it was didn't seem to realise she was there and it was too narrow to be a raider. Kara was directly behind it now and dodged to the side, getting a full view of her target.

Her eyes opened widely.

"Starbuck this is Galactica," came Adama's voice crackling through her comm system, but she didn't respond. "Starbuck? Do you have a visual ID? Starbuck?!"

Kara shook herself out of her trance, "Galactica, Starbuck, I copy you."

"What do you see?"

"It's a viper, Sir."

* * *

_Battlestar Galactica – Three months earlier_

Various crew members watched and stepped out of the way as Karl came running down the corridors followed closely behind by Kara. They both looked exhausted and sweat drenched their faces and clothing.

"Are you trying to frakking kill me Helo?" shouted Kara as she stopped suddenly in the middle of the corridor and rested her hands on her knees.

"Come on Starbuck, you're out of shape," said Helo jogging on the spot next to her.

"Do I have to remind you that I've had two babies?"

"That was three months ago."

"Yeah, and before that I was in coma and before _that_ I was captured by the cylons."

"No pain, no gain," said Helo smiling. "You want to pass your physical tomorrow?"

"I'm pretty much back to peak fitness Helo, but you still decided to drag my ass out of bed, after being up all night with two cranky babies."

"Thought they were sleeping through?"

"Not anymore," replied Kara yawning. She remembered back to when she had first brought her children back to their new home from lifestation. Cottle had kept them in for three days before finally letting them go. It was only then that Kara realised her predicament, how was she going to cope with two babies? She couldn't even hold them both at the same time. Thankfully Ishay had taught her to make a sling for two; they had been so small that they fitted perfectly.

Ever since the birth, Kara had been spending her rare free time training to get back in her viper, not that there was much to do anymore now that all the Galactica did every day was orbit around New Caprica. But Kara was still desperate to get her wings back; she would not let what the cylons did keep her out of the cockpit forever.

"Right, that's enough running for me," said Kara standing upright, feeling the ache in her leg muscles. She needed to rest now or risk cramping up during her physical.

"Come on Starbuck," said Helo as he still jogged on the spot and then started singing an old academy song.

"Frak off Helo," said Kara as she walked away back to her quarters. When she entered, her babysitter was sitting at the small table reading a book. Megan had been the best gift from Roslin and the old man, at 18 years old when the cylons attacked Megan had been working in the kitchens in order to save up money for college. She now split her time between cleaning pots and babysitting the twins and Kara thanked the gods for her invaluable help. "Hey, are they up?"

"Not yet, you have time for a shower," said Meg in her usually cheery tone of voice that made Kara wonder how someone could be that happy all the time.

After her warm and welcoming shower Kara released Meg and went to check on the little ones, who were beginning to stir.

"Hey there," said Kara smiling, glad that they hadn't started screaming yet. For the first three months they had been fairly quiet, mainly sleeping in their matching bouncy chairs. On their first day in their new home, Kara had laid them down in the chairs, cushioned by numerous blankets. She had just watched as they slept soundly, completely unaffected by anything or anyone. Kara had had no idea what to do, should she entertain them? Or just watch them sleep? After slaving for hours to settle down little Joseph, Kara quickly learnt that when babies were sleeping, you let them sleep.

Up until about a week ago this method was working and they were sleeping through the night, mostly, but now they were determined to scream at every available moment.

Kara reached down and picked up her now awake daughter, her eyes still a brilliant shade of blue, "morning Lena," she cooed. She had taken to the pet name straight away, but everyone else referred to her as LittleLee. Kara held Lena against her shoulder and gently rocked from side to side.

"I suppose you're hungry." She said and then proceeded to lift her tank. It still amazed Kara when she felt the sharp pull as her child had breakfast.

Managing the twins was all about balancing and swapping them between her arms and the bouncy chairs, and hoping that they didn't double up on her. It was difficult, but worth it for every moment that her babies smiled up at her, their little faces looking more and more like their father every day. After Lena had fed, Kara rested her over one shoulder and then gently patted her on the back. She then placed her into a bouncy chair and picked up Joseph, giving him a small kiss on the head before starting his feeding.

Afterwards Kara stood and watched her children intently; they were both smiling up at her, their blue eyes shining. They recognised their mother now. Kara leaned down and kissed the soles of the feet causing them to squirm happily and make little gurgling noises. These were the moments that she cherished the most, before she had to take them to the nursery.

Kara prepared her sling, placing Lena's favourite blanket inside before scooping her inside so she was against her chest. When Lena had been one month old, Kara had used one of Lee's old tanks as a blanket, after a projectile vomiting incident had destroyed her usual one, and she had been attached to it ever since. If Kara forgot to put the blanket in her crib then she would soon now about it.

The small family made their way over to the nursery, with Joseph being held over Kara's shoulder. As usual there were numerous looks that came their way as people were still not used to seeing Kara as a mother, and to be truthful neither was she.

After she had dropped the children off, it was back to the normal monotonous routine, heading up the morning briefing in the Ready room. It was the time when she could be a semblance of Starbuck again, and she vented all her frustrations out the pilots, saving her cheeriness for the kiddies. At least tomorrow she would get the chance to fly again, if Cottle passed her.

* * *

_Battlestar Pegasus_

Just over three months ago Lee had been back on Caprica saving as many civilians as he could. It should have made him feel better, but the only thing that had kept him jumping off the top of Megara, was the hope that he would find Kara one day. Then just as the Pegasus was leaving Colonial Space the dreams had started. Lee could never remember them fully but every morning since, he had woken up with a sense of peace warming him. He had no idea what was causing his blissful state of mind, but he liked and cherished the feeling, before the Pegasus dragged him kicking and screaming back to reality.

They had been following Lee's co-ordinates since the first dream, but as of yet they had found nothing. There was no sign of the cylons and no sign of the rest of the fleet.

Lee now stood at the back of a cell in the brig, as Cavil was enduring yet another round of having his head dunked in cold water. They had got nothing out of the toaster except sarcasm and taunts towards Lee about his captivity. It still amazed Lee how a cylon, who had been living on Caprica, could still know what his counterparts had done across the other side of space.

At first Lee thought it would give him a sense of satisfaction to hurt the cylon that was identical to one of the worst models he had met on that baseship. To exact revenge against the thing that had broken him, not because of what he did, but what he threatened to do.

But Lee was numb to what was happening, feeling neither satisfaction nor abhorrence.

He watched unemotionally as Thorn nodded to his marines to dunk the toaster's head under the water again. The officer paced around the room looking down at his prey and snarled before he began shouting again. Thorn would demand answers out of the cylon, which were always met with a wry smile.

Lee walked out of the cell and made his way towards the exit. He felt his skin prickle as he passed the cell containing the other cylon, the woman. Despite his numbness, Lee could not help but feel pity for her. She had been one of the main tormentors from the start to the end of his time on the baseship. At one point Lee had enjoyed seeing this woman suffer briefly, as Kara had caught her off guard and snapped her neck in two. But this feeling had been short lived when this model had smiled in revenge as she held down and twisted Kara's arm before ordering the nearest toaster into the cell. Lee had held his eyes tightly shut as he heard the bones snap and the resulting scream.

But as Lee walked past the toaster's cell he felt an overwhelming want to take out his side-arm and stop her suffering. His father would never have allowed such treatment of a prisoner.

Lee headed straight for the hangar deck, where standing in a corner was Anders looking as if he was on duty. He walked over and each nodded their acknowledgement, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible.

"Did you get over to the Tylium ship?" asked Lee quietly, trying to not draw anyone's attention.

"Yes I did, it's looking dark and dirty in there, but people have set up home."

"Have they got enough food?"

"For now, but we may have to do a raid in a couple of months."

Lee nodded, he knew the time would come when he would have to steal from the Pegasus.

* * *

_Battlestar Galactica_

The occupants of the Ready room all stared intently as Kara entered. It was the first time in months that they had seen her donning her flightsuit. Helo grinned from his seat as she took her place behind the podium, the old spirit back in her eyes.

"You joining us out there Sir?" spoke out Hotdog from the middle row.

"I sure am," said Kara with a smile, which was met by a few whoops around the room. "The training exercise is to go ahead as before next week. I'm sure you'll be pleased to know that you'll have yours truly as an extra target." Another few whoops erupted around the room. "This exercise is to hone your skills in dogfights. You'll be up against the more experienced pilots in mock combat."

Kara ignored Kat as she rolled her eyes, even though the lieutenant had been flying for only a year, her bravado was that of a twenty year veteran.

"Do you have a problem with that Lieutenant?" asked Kara staring down at Kat who was sitting in the front row.

"No Sir," said Kat with a sneer. "I'm looking forward to blowing you all out of the sky."

Kara didn't rise to the bait; she had dealt with numerous overly confident rookies in her years as a trainer. Most cadets had heard of her prowess as a pilot and had made it their personal challenge to try and out gun her in the simulators. No-one had succeeded and Kara was not going to let that reputation be disputed.

* * *

The familiar rush of her viper had been a wonderful release as the g-forces pushed her into the back of her seat. Although the CAP was long and boring, it felt like a gift to be able to flip her viper and spread its wings. Megan had been waiting out in the wings of the hangar deck when she had finally returned and Tyrol had given her the go ahead to bring the babies to greet their mother home. Kara had spent ages with them in the cockpit of her viper, showing them the different panels and buttons.

They had been completely enthralled and Kara had been in her element. Vipers, she knew everything about and Kara felt completely at ease and confident for the first time in three months.

Now, as she bounced Lena over her shoulder as she screamed away, did Kara completely useless again. They had both been wailing nonstop for hours and Kara had not been to sleep for what felt like days.

"Come on," she said frantically trying not to raise her voice too much. "What the the frak do you want?"

Kara had tried everything; feeding, changing, burping, bouncing, but nothing seemed to work. As soon as one calmed down the other would start and set the other one off again. Kara found that she had come to the end of her patience. She bit her lip to stop from screaming and picked up the phone that was hung on the wall and dialled.

After a few moments a gruff and sleepy voice answered, "This better be important."

Kara ignored the obvious annoyance emanating from Adama, "they won't stop frakking crying."

Adama grunted, "have you fed them?"

"Of course I've frakking fed them, I've done everything, and they won't stop."

Adama paused for a moment, "okay, give me a minute."

The line went dead suddenly and Kara slammed down the receiver, which only succeeded in making Lena scream her lungs out more.

"Alright, alright I'm sorry," said Kara rubbing her daughter's back gently. "Mummy just needs some godsdamn sleep okay? Think you can do that for me?"

Thankfully Lena seemed to quieten down slightly, but then Joseph seemed to feel left out and began wailing louder. They were so loud that Kara didn't hear the soft knock at the hatch as Adama entered, wearing his dressing gown and looking tired. He immediately went over to the bouncy chair where Joseph was crying and lifted him out, cradling him gently in the crook of his arm. He then walked around the room gently bouncing him and singing quietly. Kara looked on in awe as a few minutes later Joseph was finally quiet and looked like he might drift off to sleep. Lena had also calmed down in Kara's arm and the room was blissfully quiet.

"How the frak did you do that?" whispered Kara.

"Practice," replied Adama, looking down at Joseph who had finally nodded off to sleep.

Kara slouched down on her couch in defeat; Lena was still restless and seemed determined not to sleep but Kara did not have the energy to argue back.

Adama walked over and gently took the baby from her shoulder, "come on LittleLee."

Again he walked around the room gently bouncing her and started talking about what he had done that day, it made for boring listening but worked a treat and within minutes she was asleep.

"You're never leaving," said Kara with a yawn.

"Lee was the same," replied Adama as he put his granddaughter in her bouncy chair. "At about three months he started screaming through the night, the only thing that worked was if you sung to him or told him stories."

"I don't know any stories."

"Tell them anything, they won't remember."

Kara still seemed dejected and curled up on the couch.

"You're doing good Starbuck."

Adama walked over to the bouncy chairs and then took each baby in turn through to their cribs, by the time he returned Kara was fast asleep, curled up on the sofa. He grabbed the blanket off the bed and spread it over her sleeping form, and then left the quarters with a smile.

* * *

_Battlestar Pegasus_

Lee sat at the back of the rec room and watched the various games of triad playing at the tables. During their trip back to Caprica the crew had managed to obtain many supplies in abundance, most importantly extra supplies of alcohol. The crew had gone from being t-total in the last three months to chain smoking, near alcoholics. Lee grabbed his full glass from in front of him and swigged down the warm ambrosia, he couldn't remember how many he had drunk that evening, but by the way the room was spinning it was a lot.

Lee wanted to drown out the monotonous boredom that had overtaken them all as they travelled through empty space. Not once had they seen any sign of the cylons, which had led to a permanent state of alert, with many believing that any day soon the end would come. Lee was still sleeping well. But no matter how many times the ship jumped they seemed to be getting nowhere. Part of him believed that he was getting closer to Kara, but his hope was dwindling.

Lee sloppily poured himself another drink and downed the contents straight away, half aware of the figure that pulled up a chair beside him.

"You're sure packing it away tonight Apollo," said the man nicely.

"This is the officer's rec room Anders," replied Lee slurring his speech.

"Yeah, well, I was invited to a triad game," replied Anders as he took a drag on his cigarette and stubbed it out in the ashtray.

"Well I'm sure they will be better company then me."

"Burned out, besides, you look about ready to keel over."

"Frak off Sam," replied Lee and then pushed back from the table, nearly toppling over in the process.

"Whoa, steady there."

Anders grabbed Lee's arm as he staggered into a table, which was abruptly shaken off. Undeterred, Anders still followed him down the corridor, repairing the damage as he went. As Lee entered the senior officers' quarters, he tripped over his own feet and went crashing straight onto the table, which proceeded to collapse to the side, sending Lee sprawling to the floor.

Anders sighed as he walked over and held out his hand, which Lee promptly knocked away.

"What's this about?" asked Anders.

Ignoring him, Lee began to get to his feet, feeling slightly more in control of his legs then before. He staggered towards his locker, swinging it open heavily and stood staring in the mirror. After a few moments he saw Anders approaching from behind. Lee bit back his anger, wanting to just be left alone.

"Is this about Kara?"

Lee couldn't stop himself from swinging around and smacking Anders hard in the jaw with his fist sending him flying backwards into the upturned table. The next few moments were a flurry of flying fists as the two men exchanged blows, only stopping when Lee tripped over the table again and landed hard on the deck. Out of breath, Anders sat on one of the bunks wiping away the blood that had trickled from his nose.

"Frak," said Lee as he covered his face with his hands.

"What_ was_ this about?"

"I can't stop thinking about her, where she is," replied Lee, fully aware that Anders would know who was talking about.

Anders nodded, he had thought before that something was going on between them and the fight was an affirmation of his suspicion. "Was there something going on between you?" he asked, not sure if he really wanted to know the answer.

Lee didn't respond, his head was clearing gradually and he could feel his cheek swelling up along with a fat lip. But as much as he wanted to jump up and admit his feelings for Kara, he found himself being struck dumb.

"I thought so," said Anders and walked out of the room leaving Lee on the floor.

"Frak," said Lee and rolled to his bunk, feeling guilty. The room was still spinning and Lee found himself holding his stomach to stop himself from throwing up. He fell quickly into a dreamless, drink induced sleep.

For the next few days Lee avoided Anders as much as possible. The following morning after, he had forgotten what had happened; it wasn't until he saw the swollen bruise on his cheekbone that he remembered the fight. Then he remembered how downtrodden Anders had looked when he had walked away and felt incredibly guilty.

Lee entered the CIC where Cain was perusing through some star charts with Shaw and Hoshi at her side. Anders was one of the marines standing guard at the entrance. Lee nodded to him briefly and walked up to the Admiral.

"Ah Captain, nice of you to join us," she said in her usual powerful voice.

"Admiral, Sir."

"The bruise on your face is finally healing; you never did tell me how that happened."

"I fell over."

"Onto a fist?" asked Cain, but she didn't seem interested in carrying on the conversation any further. She picked up the star charts and flipped them round. "We're still following the course you suggested Captain, do you have any idea where we are heading?"

"I told you that I think this is the course Galactica was heading for," replied Lee, with no idea if it was correct or not, he only had a feeling that was impossible to describe.

"Well, this course doesn't seem to be heading anywhere in particular. There isn't much out there, a couple of planets, nebulas, nothing interesting."

Lee suddenly felt strange, faint almost, as he pointed to the charts. "The fleet would never go to the one of the planets for longer than a few days. If they are anywhere then it'll be in one of the nebulas where the cylons wouldn't be able to detect them."

"They wouldn't be able to stay in a nebula forever, it interferes with systems, and they would have to leave for resources."

"Depends on what's in the nebula," said Lee offhand. "But if we're going to find them, then the nebulas and any Tylium rich planets will be the best place to start."

"Okay Captain, Hoshi lay in course for here," she said and pointed to the star chart.

As the CIC sprung into action to prepare for their next jump, Lee walked over to the entrance where the marines were standing guard.

"Captain," said Anders shortly.

"I, um. I was out of order last week."

"It doesn't matter, you were drunk."

"Well I shouldn't have been."

"Look, I think you should have this," said Anders after a few moments and then held out his hand, which contained a dogtag. Lee felt the pull on his heart at seeing K THRACE engraved on the front.

"No," said Lee quietly. "She gave it to you, so it's up to her to take it back."

Anders placed the tag back in his pocket and looked on as Lee walked away. Both men in hope that one day they would find Kara, so she could make the choice for herself.

* * *

_Battlestar Galactica_

Starbuck was back with a vengeance; her viper spiralling and spinning as she outmanoeuvred Kat with relative ease.

She smiled briefly down at the picture of her babies, who for the last week had been sleeping better, but Kara was quickly running out of stories. Last night she had to resort to telling them about the time "mummy and daddy were really drunk and got arrested by Caprican police, and uncle Helo had to bail them out."

Kara ignored the shouts through her headset, warning her that Kat was on her tail. _As if I don't already know. _She pulled hard over on her stick and dodged close to the Galactica's starboard landing pod. She hit the burners and then dived sharply, flipping her viper at the last second, spinning around to face her attacker. Kat had been right on her tail, and now they were head to head, but Kara was quicker. She pulled her viper over in order to easily avoid Kat's predictable onslaught and took her out with one pull of her trigger.

"You're out Kat," said Kara, hiding the glee in her voice. She could see, but not hear, the cursing coming Kat's cockpit.

"Come on everyone," continued Kara, smiling. "Nice training exercise, I'll see you back on the deck."

The whoops greeted Kara loudly as soon as the canopy of her viper pulled back. Everyone seemed happy to have Starbuck back and Kat put in her place. As she was handing her helmet to Cally, Karl bounded up and clapped his arm around her shoulders.

"Fancy a celebratory drink tonight Starbuck? Someone needs to take her top-gun mug back."

"Aw Helo, you know I can't turn down an invite for a nights' drinking, but I have two babies who will make me pay if I don't put them to bed."

"Bring them along, we'll make it an early one, no smoking," shouted out Karl as Kara walked away from the deck.

At 0600 hours, Kara entered the Rec room to the sound of cheers from her fellow pilots. As Karl had promised, there wasn't a single person smoking and the room was relaxed. She carried her two babies, who were sitting comfortably in her arms and looking excited at being the centre of attention.

Kara had expected Kat to be missing in the action, but instead she walked over and tickled Joseph's leg, making him giggle and squirm in delight.

"You can't hold the top-gun mug with both of them in your arms," said Kat, with only a hint of bitterness. She then held out her arms and Kara let her take Joseph, who was immediately swept into the air towards the other pilots. He was giggling loudly and waved his little chubby arms about widely. "Hey kiddo! Want to see some pictures of your mom?"

Kara watched on shocked as Kat walked Joseph around the room and showed him the pictures hanging around the wall and bouncing him gently.

"I believe you're owed one top-gun mug," said Helo walking over with the large and familiar looking mug. "Full of water just for you," he added with a smile.

"You shouldn't have...really," replied Kara. There was only one way to drink from the top-gun mug and that was to fill it with ambrosia, water just wasn't the same.

Helo took Lena in his arms and handed over the mug, which Kara raised then downed the alcohol free contents to cheers from her fellow pilots.

Half an hour later and Kara was in the middle of a friendly triad game with Karl, Hotdog and Duck, but she wasn't doing as well as normal. Karl, on the other hand, was on a winning streak.

"You can't beat me today Starbuck, I have my good luck charm," said Karl, bouncing a happy Lena on his lap.

"Hey, you can't use my kid to beat me at cards," replied Kara playfully and took her daughter back into her lap, so they could share her cards.

"What do you think kiddo?" Lena thumped her hand down on the cards with a squeal. "That's what I thought," said Kara, giving her daughter a kiss on the head and throwing down her cards face up on the table. It had been the right choice, as Helo threw down full colours, wiping Duck from the game.

Two rounds later and Kara was even with Helo, having knocked out Hotdog. She now had a mediocre hand and Karl had thrown everything he had into the pot. Lena was giggling happily, "what do you think? Do you think uncle Helo is bluffing?" asked Kara. Lena giggled again and Kara smiled confidently. "All in Helo, what've you got?"

Karl placed his cards face up onto the table slightly nervously. The grin grew on Kara face as she threw in the winning hand.

"Aw frak," said Karl.

"Hey!" replied Kara motioning towards her daughter. "They hear that word enough from me."

Kara then laughed and started to drag her winnings to her side of the table and scooped them into her coat, "thank you gentlemen," she said with a smile that Karl had not seen since before the end of the worlds.

Kara stood with her daughter in her arms and walked over to collect Joseph.

"You're not turning in already are you Sir?" shouted Hotdog from across the room."

"Afraid so Hotdog, these little nuggets need their sleep."

Kara then walked away with her small family in her hands, a familiar swagger back in her walk.

Starbuck was back.

* * *

_Three Months Later_

Kara had awoken that morning feeling more alert and awake then she had been in a long time. But Joseph and Lena had been hyperactive, refusing to stay still as Kara tried to bathe and dress them. A week previously they had learnt to roll over and shuffle along on all fours. Since then, Kara had been on a constant state of alert. Every time she turned her back for a second one of them would have crawled across the room. It was exhausting, but incredibly rewarding seeing her babies' personalities growing.

That morning Kara was running very late for her morning briefing and her kids were determined to make it as difficult as possible for her to leave their quarters. Just when Kara had opened the hatch, with her babies under her arm, did something stop her in her tracks.

"What the frak is that smell?" said Kara. "I thought we had a deal? Mom has to leave in the mornings, so no unscheduled nappy fillings."

She threw down her bag and worked out that it was Joseph who was the offending baby. Placing Lena on the floor, she dashed Joseph over to the table and set about changing him.

"Aw Gods," she said with a grimace, which Joseph returned with a big grin. "Don't pull that face at me you little terror, that was your father's grin after annoying me." Joseph only giggled in response and kicked his legs up happily.

In her haste to make it to the morning briefing, Kara had forgotten one of the principle rules of dealing with crawling twins, never turn your back.

Lena was not in the room anymore.

"Frak!" shouted out Kara and began running down the corridor with Joseph in her arms, her heart beating loudly. Relief finally came when she turned a corner and found Tigh standing in the corridor holding the little escapee as if she was dangerous.

"She's a baby Sir, not a bomb," said Kara, her heart finally calming down.

Tigh looked at Lena and made an uncertain sound, "I don't know, the last time someone told me that, you're father went and puked all over me."

Kara suppressed the urge to laugh at the thought of baby Lee being sick on the XO.

"I think you lost something Captain," said Tigh and handed over the over excited little girl.

"Sorry, Sir," replied Kara and then turned away quickly to haul ass to the nursery.

_Three hours later_

Kara had lost communication with Galactica and she was alone in a nebula, with next to useless dradis, and unknown targets surrounding her. If they were toasters, then she was probably frakked. Kara stared down at her consol where she had a stuck a picture of her babies, huddled together and smiling. She stroked the picture and then flipped her viper over again.

Kara was certain of one thing; she would not allow anything that could harm her children get close to the Galactica.

Her viper closed in quickly towards the target, struggling to see what was in front of her. She suddenly pulled hard over on her stick in an attempt to anticipate where the ship was going.

The glow from three engines blasted across the nose of her viper.

"Frak!" she shouted out and rolled to the side to avoid a collision. Whatever it was didn't seem to realise she was there and it was too narrow to be a raider. Kara was directly behind it now and dodged to the side, getting a full view of her target.

Her eyes opened widely.

"Starbuck this is Galactica," came Adama's voice crackling through her comm system, but she didn't respond. "Starbuck? Do you have a visual ID? Starbuck?!"

Kara shook herself out of her trance, "Galactica, Starbuck, I copy you."

"What do you see?"

"It's a viper, Sir."

All of a sudden Kara could only hear static in her ear as the Galactica went out of range again, but she ignored it, her attention focused on the ship in front of her. It was a Mark VII Viper, and the sight of it made her heart beat faster and the hairs on her arms stand on end. She dodged her viper to the side and slowly came into line with the ship that no longer seemed to be evading her, obviously just as confused and lost in the nebula as she was.

Kara nudged the nose of her viper forward, just as she heard the sound of Adama's voice in her ear again, and gasped.

Clearly marked on the side of the unknown viper was Cpt. L Adama, "Apollo."

Kara wanted to cry out his name, in complete disbelief that she could see his name emblazoned on the side of a ship, with the silhouette of the pilot inside, twisting around in his chair to see what was coming up from behind.

As the viper slowed, Kara drew gradually alongside, and then she saw him, those piercing blue eyes staring through the two panes of glass that separated them. Complete shock covered both of their faces.

Finally they could hear each other breathing heavily through their ear pieces.

Kara could barely speak, finally uttering the only words she could think of to say.

"Hi Lee."


	28. Finding the Words Part One

Chapter 27

"Hi Lee."

Two simple words that shook Lee to his core. He couldn't believe that just a few minutes ago he thought that he was merely flying into a nebula on a recon mission, and now he was within arm's reach of Kara.

"Kara?" he said in disbelief, not knowing what else to say.

"Don't worry, it's really me," she replied with a smile, though she was in complete amazement herself. Kara looked down briefly at the picture of her twins and smiled before looking back up at their father who was still looking intently at her.

"How... how?"

"I could ask you the same question Lee, the Galactica's been living here."

"Flip your viper and you'll see," replied Lee smiling and then spun his ship end on end, which Kara quickly followed. She soon saw what the other blip on her dradis had been, as looming out of the clouds of the nebula she saw the large shape of a Battlestar.

"Oh my gods."

"They found me after..."

Kara quickly turned her head towards Lee, and saw the look of distress that was evident on his face. Flashes of the last time she had seen him flashed through her mind, which she promptly pushed away as their vipers soared closely over the starboard flight pod of the ship, past the letters emblazoned on the side that spelt out PEGASUS.

Lee suddenly heard the familiar voice of Cain in his ear, calling for him to come back on board the Pegasus, but after searching relentlessly for the Galactica for so long he was not about to turn away from her now.

"Pegasus, this is Apollo, I'm having trouble hearing you clearly," he lied with a grin on his face. "I'm heading to liaise with the Galactica."

He ignored the strong voice of Cain telling him to get his ass immediately back to the Pegasus and turned off the comm link. When he turned back to Kara he saw that she was smiling widely.

"What?"

"Nothing," she replied with a small laugh. "Just thinking that I've been a bad influence on you. The Lee I used to know would never flat out lie to a superior officer."

Lee laughed back, "people change, Kara."

Kara nodded, knowing exactly what he meant. Since her captivity at the hands of the cylons her life had changed irrevocably. She took another look at the picture of her babies, their little faces warming her heart. It was time to bring their father back to them.

"Hey Apollo, you think you can remember how to make a hands on landing?"

"Just you try and stop me."

"Race you there!"

Kara kicked her viper into action and spun away to the side, laughing loudly as she heard Lee shouting out "cheater!" before starting his pursuit. Their vipers intertwined over and around each other, looping and spinning, as they happily headed for home.

* * *

The hangar deck was a bustle of activity as the deckhands all raced to prepare for two unscheduled landings, one of which was 15 months overdue. The chaos was further heightened by the various crew members who had flocked to the deck, eager to see if the news was true that Apollo had come home. Others just wanted to see the spectacle of the Kara and Lee reunion.

Tyrol was marching about and shouting out orders. He still felt guilty for the part he had played in Lee's disappearance, despite numerous reassurances from Kara. He had also been a witness to a part of the relationship that was about to be finally reunited.

"Alright everybody," he shouted out loudly. "You know the drill; we have two unscheduled vipers and a raptor coming in. The Commander is also on his way to the deck. Now is also the time to show a little discretion about events since Apollo's disappearance, people."

"What events would those be Sir?" asked one cheeky deckhand.

"You know full well Saunders, and I will personally deal with anyone who steps over that line."

Despite not mentioning the "events" specifically, the rest of the deck was in no doubt that he was referring to the lineage of Kara's children. It was no secret on the ship, especially after the rumours from the incident in the brig and Baltar's big mouth. The entire fleet knew that Lee was coming home as an unsuspecting father of two.

Tyrol looked up and saw that Adama had already arrived and was looking out over the hangar, his hands tightly grasping the railings.

A few minutes later the sirens were sounded to indicate that the ships were ready for docking. In quick succession the deckhands ran forward and the vipers were pulled onto the deck one after the other. The canopies pulled back and the cheers started immediately as Lee pulled off his helmet and rose from his chair.

The sensation was overwhelming as numerous hands patted Lee on the back as he descended the steps he had not seen for far too long. The hugs from various deck hands came in droves and Lee had barely time to take a breath.

But nothing could prepare him for the sensation of seeing Kara pushing her way through the throng, throwing her helmet to the side and running into his arms. They embraced each other tightly, the tears pooling in their eyes. The crowd knew it was time to step back and let the couple reunite.

They didn't want to let each other go even when the memories of the last fifteen months came flooding back to them. The memories of the last time they had seen each other as Lee was dragged away. The last words Kara had said, _I love you. _

"I missed you," whispered Lee into her ear.

Kara sniffed and then whispered back, "I missed you too."

They knew that they had an audience, but neither cared. Lee suddenly felt another hand at his back and knew immediately that it belonged to his father. He reluctantly pulled away from Kara's warm embrace and turned to see a face that looked liked it had aged. No words needed to be spoken between them as they too tightly embraced.

Kara stood to the side watching the small family reunion, wondering how to tell Lee about his new family. Her stomach clenched suddenly from the nerves, scared that he would panic and walk away, scared that he would reject them.

The sound of the docking bay doors slowly opening abruptly broke through the happy reunion. Everyone was silent and backed away as a raptor was led onto the deck, eager anticipation written across their faces. When the raptor's hatch opened, Cain stepped out, flanked by Fisk and Shaw and a bunch of marines.

Lee felt selfishly relieved that Anders was not one of party, turning his attention to Kara who was now stood at his side. They were both only vaguely aware of the greeting between Cain and Adama, only listening when she welcomed the Galactica back to the fleet.

_Back to the fleet? _

As far as Kara was concerned the Pegasus and her crew were the ones who should be welcomed back to the fleet. The rest of the deckhands, however, had not seemed to notice the implications of the greeting as they walked up to greet the newcomers.

"Commander," said Cain addressing Adama. "I know this is an emotional time, but I require Captain Adama back on the Pegasus straight away."

Kara was about to shout out in protest but the soft touch of the old man taking her hand, obviously anticipating her reaction, stopped her.

"I also require all of your logs," she continued. "There are a number of issues we need to discuss so I expect you and your senior officers to come to the Pegasus at 1800 hours."

"Yes, Sir," replied Adama. "I'll have the logs ready straight away."

Cain then turned towards Lee, "get your viper ready. I expect you to be back on the Pegasus before I am."

"Yes, sir," replied Lee. He took another look towards Kara before he had to turn away and look for the Chief.

Kara stood on the deck and watched as Lee's viper was prepped and the towed to the launch tube. She was still watching as the tube opened back up for the next ship, desperately willing him to come home again.

* * *

Kara should have known that her reunion with Lee would not be as simple as she had hoped. All she wanted to do was be with him, to tell him about the children they had together. But Cain had gotten in the way and sent Lee straight back to the Pegasus, her draconian leadership already coming into play.

Kara wanted to know where Lee had been for the past fifteen months, desperate to know how he had escaped from the cylons. She was now stuck on a raptor that was making its way to the Pegasus with Adama and Tigh sitting opposite her. As the CAG she was considered to be one of the most senior officers on the Galactica. She had now changed into her duty blues, which had luckily just come back from the laundry after Joseph had thrown-up slightly on her shoulder.

Apart from the dim prospect of being in a meeting for what would seem to be a lifetime with Cain, Kara was looking forward to hopefully seeing Lee again.

"Are you okay?" asked Adama in his usual gravelly tone.

"Never better," replied Kara blandly.

"We found him Kara."

Kara smiled and turned to the old man, "I know, it's just..." She paused not knowing what to say. She was overjoyed at having found Lee again but she was also terrified and apprehensive. "How the frak am I going to tell him?"

"You're on your own there I'm afraid, but I do know that it has to be done as soon as possible, before he hears it from someone else."

"I know, and I will, as soon as frakking Cain lets me talk to him."

"Watch out for her Kara, she's not as much of a "soft touch" as I am, and I have a feeling she may be gunning for all of us."

Kara nodded and stared towards the front of the raptor as it entered the belly of the beast. The Pegasus was much larger and everything looked shiny and new. It was completely opposite to the Galactica, which was looking shabbier and more broken down as the months wore on.

Cain was on deck to greet them as they disembarked from the raptor, but Kara hung back as they were led through the large ship towards the conference room.

She felt Lee's presence before she saw him, as he walked into step with her.

"Fancy seeing you here _Captain,_" he said quietly so only she could hear. "When did you get the promotion?"

Kara felt the hairs on her neck stand up as she felt his breath against her skin, "at our funeral."

"Oh," replied Lee taken aback. "We had a funeral?"

"Yep, apparently it was very moving, lots of tears," Kara said sarcastically. "You were promoted to major by the way."

"Oh. What else did I miss?"

Kara felt her heart quicken at the question, knowing that now was not the time to tell him about their children, seen as they were walking closely behind the Admiral. "Quite a lot actually."

"I wasn't gone that long was I?"

"About fifteen months."

"Really? Are you sure?" asked Lee, his grasp of time had gotten completely muddled since his capture.

"Positive," replied Kara, _enough time for me to have twins that are now six months old. _"Baltar's now the new President."

"What?!" asked Lee, loudly enough that Cain looked over her shoulder briefly. "How the frak did that happen?"

"He won the election, claimed to make this place our new home, people seemed to want that."

"So we've settled here and all the Galactica's does is orbit the planet now."

"Pretty much. The old man only allowed a few crew members to leave, seemed to really want to keep his crew together, which probably had something to do with your disappearance."

Lee understood, without him the crew of the Galactica were the only family that his father had left. "What's the planet like?"

"Cold, but liveable, reminds me a bit of Aerlon."

Their conversation was rudely cut off as they reached the conference room. As Kara had predicted the meeting seemed to last forever as Adama and Cain updated each other about everything that had happened since the cylon attack. Kara couldn't help but feel Cain's eyes glaring at her frequently, which made her feel decidedly uncomfortable. Either the Admiral didn't like her by sight or she had read her career profile. Kara guessed the latter, hence the look of disapproval.

Instead of contributing or listening, Kara thought about her babies back on the Galactica. After Lee had been ordered away she had gone to see them in the nursery.

"_Hey there kiddoes," Kara cooed as she sat on the floor next to where they were playing. Toys on the Galactica were scarce but Adama had managed to obtain enough to keep the young occupants of the growing nursery occupied. Prior to the attacks, having that number of children on a Battlestar was unheard of and certainly there had been no nurseries to speak of. The new facilities were a blessing from the gods as far as Kara was concerned._

_Joseph and Lena looked up with glee to see their mother's unexpected visit and both held out their arms seeking attention. Kara scooped them both into her lap and gave them both a kiss on top of their heads._

"_You're here early," stated one of the attendants. "Is it true they found another Battlestar?"_

"_Yeah," replied Kara and then addressed her children, "and do you know who else? I found your daddy." It was easy to tell her children as it was unlikely they understood anything she said. Lee, on the other hand, would be an entirely different situation. _

"_Oh my gods," said the nurse evidently shocked. "Lee Adama is still alive?"_

Kara had been the only one left in the fleet that had held onto the faith that Lee was still alive. It hadn't just been a hope for her, she had really believed it, felt it to be true, a sensation that she doubted she would ever be able to describe.

Finally Cain ordered them all out of the room, demanding to speak to Adama alone. Tigh glanced over at Kara and then led Fisk away, obviously to give her some time alone with Lee.

But now the moment had come, Kara could not find the words to even begin.

Lee looked at her intently as she paced around the room. He wanted nothing more than to walk over and take Kara in his arms, but there was obviously something weighing on her mind, and he was scared to find out what. There was so much to be said between them about what had happened. As he looked over at the woman he longed for, Lee couldn't help but notice that there was something about her that looked different, but he couldn't quite work out what it was. Lee had expected Kara to change due to her mistreatment at the hands of the cylons. He looked down at her hand and suddenly saw flashes of her screaming in agony, the memory so powerful that he had to look away.

"What's wrong?" asked Kara, walking up concerned. The pain that had flashed across his face was evident. She placed her hand on his arm, which Lee gently took hold of, stroking her palm softly, "it's fine now," she added, realising what Lee must be remembering. It had been a moment in her life that Kara also wished to forget, the unbearable pain as her hand was snapped apart.

Lee looked up at her intently, the blue eyes that she saw reflected in her children every day, bored straight through to her soul.

"What the frak happened on that baseship Kara?"

"I don't know, all I remember is being dragged away and then everything else is black. Next thing I vaguely remember is waking up in lifestation and finding myself..." Kara stopped herself before she said the word _pregnant_.

"Found yourself what?"

Kara avoided answering the question and instead just looked at him, at his obviously thinner frame. She suddenly felt stupidly self-conscious about her own appearance. She was still trying to lose some of her baby weight, but knew that her body would never quite be the same again. Kara's focus suddenly rose to Lee's neck where she saw a long scar, curving in a long line from the side around to the back. The tears pooled in her eyes as she reached up and touched it gently, remembering the suffering and torment they had shared together.

"Lee, there's something I need to tell you," began Kara softly.

Lee looked at her, the look of puzzlement playing across his face. But fate was not on Kara's side as the conference room doors abruptly opened and Cain exited followed by a disgruntled looking Adama. It did not seem to go unnoticed that Kara and Lee were standing close to each other.

"I hear that in your absence the Commander saw fit to promote you to major," said Cain addressing Lee. "It would seem unfair to demote you, so make sure you procure your new insignia as soon as possible."

"Yes, sir," replied Lee saluting sharply.

Kara was then led back to the raptor along with Adama and Tigh whereas Lee had been sent to the ready room, so he wouldn't have the opportunity to say goodbye.

Once back on the Galactica, Adama had sent a marine to summon Kara to his quarters. It was getting late but she attended straight away.

"Sit down," he said as she entered, with her arm wrapped around her twins who were gurgling happily and kicking their little pudgy legs. Adama walked over and took hold of Joseph so Kara could sit down.

"So what did Cain want to talk about in private? That is what you wanted to talk about isn't it?"

"The Admiral has ordered all crew members that were discharged to live on New Caprica, to be recalled."

"But you only allowed a few individuals to go didn't you?"

"The Admiral has also discussed a merger of our crews."

"Reassignment," said Kara, stating a fact not asking a question. "Has she already made her choices?"

"Yes, which is why I've asked you to come here."

"I'm being transferred to the Pegasus?" said Kara angrily, causing Lena to squirm slightly in her lap, obviously aware of her mother's annoyance.

"You're to report there tomorrow morning."

"Frak," muttered Kara before adding. "Did you tell her about these two?"

"She didn't give me the chance."

"Great, that's just frakking great. So I'm to turn up there tomorrow with two kids in tow?"

"Or you'll have to leave them here."

"No way, she'll have to deal with it."

"That should be worth seeing."

"She really is gunning for all of us isn't she?"

"It would seem so. Be careful Kara, I have a feeling that the young Admiral can be unpredictable and dangerous."

_Just like me, _thought Kara.

* * *

Lee played over the reunion again and again in his head, and hadn't slept at all that night. Cain seemed determined to keep him away from the Galactica at all costs and he had been banned from calling his father. He was currently sitting in the mess hall eating some slush that was trying to pass as lunch. The room was loud as normal, especially as the Pegasus crew was in extremely high spirits.

Lee still couldn't get over how, in the space of fifteen months, Kara had seemed to change so much. She was still the same old Starbuck in a viper, but she seemed softer somehow, like something had taken some of her edginess away.

His attention was suddenly drawn away by Lieutenant Sykes storming into the room laughing with two other officers. He was a young pilot, barely out of flight school and had only been on his first assignment when the cylons attacked. In Lee's opinion he was still pretty green in the cockpit.

"Why are you so happy?" asked another pilot who had tattoos covering one of his arms.

"Just saw one of the new arrivals from the bucket being carried down to the brig," replied Sykes laughing, which caused Lee's heart to hammer in his chest. "Screaming and cussing on the way. Hey Jeffers, remember me telling you about the sweet flight instructor I had at Delphi?"

"The one that told you to frak off and made you run circuits for the next week when you came on to her?"

"The very same," replied Sykes and threw himself into a chair before starting to dig into his lunch. Lee's stomach was now lurching; it definitely had to be Kara. _What had she done now?_

"Why was she being taken down to the brig?" asked another pilot.

"This is the best part. She comes on board and Cain's waiting for her, all serious as always. What happens? According to Gibbs she turns up with a kid in tow."

Lee couldn't help spitting out the rest of his drink as he started coughing. _Kara has a child? _

"You okay Apollo?" asked Sykes before continuing. "Anyway, apparently Cain goes crazy, tells her to send the kid back, which she refuses to do. Guess Cain didn't like having her authority questioned, next moment she orders her kid to be taken away and sends her down to the brig. The Captain kicked off like crazy, ended up being dragged down there."

Lee had gone numb from the shock. _When the frak did Kara have a child? _ He felt the anger bubble inside him the more he thought about it. _All I've thought about for over a year is you, whilst you've been shacked up and having a kid with someone else?_

The anger was still keeping him going as he heard his name being called over the comm system, ordering him to report to Cain's quarters.

"Careful Apollo, I hear Cain's in a bad mood," shouted out Sykes as Lee walked out of the mess hall. Ignoring the rookie pilot, Lee made his way towards Cain's quarters, various thoughts still flooding through his head. He also ignored the various looks coming his way down the corridors as he stormed through, and ignored Anders who approached him asking about the rumours.

When he entered Cain's quarters Lee was shocked to find that she was seated on the floor in front of a small child. He was playing with a small ball, which he chucked with a giggle. It landed at Lee's feet, which he picked up and gripped tightly in his hand before placing it on the nearest table.

"Didn't know you were deciding to open a day-care centre sir," he said, unable to take his eyes off the small child, _Kara's child. _He didn't look very old, more like a baby. His short dark hair was starting to grow into little ringlets, his little chubby arms bouncing up and down with joy. Lee sucked in a breath as the child smiled widely, Kara's smile.

Cain stood up, leaving the child playing happily. "I'm afraid I've had a bit of trouble with a certain Captain."

"I heard," replied Lee, still looking down at the child.

"As you already know, I don't like people questioning my orders."

Lee nodded, "so what are you going to do about the child? Colonial Fleet rules do state that the parents have the right to have their child accompany them on board a Battlestar."

"Which is exactly what the Captain said, and you know how that ended."

"You can't keep her from her child."

"Are you also going to question my authority, major?" asked Cain strongly, her voice cutting.

"No, sir, I'm just concerned about the child."

"Which is where you come in,"

"Wh...what?" asked Lee, clearly shocked.

"As you rightly stated, a child of military parents has the right to be housed with at least one of them, so congratulations."

Lee felt the blood drain suddenly from his face, "_Lee, there's something I need to tell you."_

"I guess by the expression on your face that she hasn't had the chance to tell you yet."

Lee wasn't really listening, he was quickly doing some arithmetic in his head, the only conclusion of which he could come to was _oh frak. _He had just found out from Cain of all people that he was a father, and his son was sitting playing happily at his feet completely unawares. Lee felt winded as if he had been kicked in the gut.

"I've had some quarters prepared for you."

"No," said Lee sternly, noticing that his son had stopped playing and was now looking up at the spectacle.

"Care to repeat that major?"

Lee swallowed before building up the courage to talk, "I won't take Kara's child away from her."

"I didn't say it was going to be a permanent arrangement major, the captain just needs to cool her heels for a while." 

But Lee didn't respond, his attention was completely focused on his son, who was still gazing up in wonder. It was as if he was looking at a reflection of himself at that age, with bright blue innocent eyes.

Cain was getting impatient and had no intention of continuing the discussion any further. She leaned down and took the infant in her arms, balancing him on her hip. "Now, your mum and dad think that they can question my orders," she said dangerously sweetly to the child as he gripped at her hair with his pudgy little hand. "So what do you think I should do?"

"Sir?"

"I know. How about some time in the brig with your mum?"

Lee watched horrified as his son sensed that Cain was not the friendly lady he had been playing with earlier and began to cry, his little sobs cutting at Lee's heart. He quickly paced forward and took him in his arms, the wails deccreasing as he nervously held him against his side. Lee hadn't held a baby since his brother was born and had no idea if he was doing it right.

"Good," said Cain. "I'm glad we've got that problem sorted. Chalmers get in here," she called to the marine that usually stood outside her room. "Please escort the major to his new quarters."

"What, no more surprises?" asked Lee rhetorically.

But he should have learnt never to tempt fate as he suddenly heard another cry.

"Ah yes, I nearly forgot," said Cain, looking as if she was thoroughly enjoying herself. She walked back towards her bedroom area, and it was only then that Lee noticed a small gathering of pillows on the bed. If he thought he had been shocked before, it was nothing compared to how he felt when Cain picked up another child who looked decidedly annoyed at being woken up, and was not afraid to show her displeasure. "There are two of them."

Lee swallowed but his mouth was parched. _We have _two_ children together?_

Cain handed the little girl, his daughter, to the marine who looked nearly as dumbstruck as Lee was. "Get out of my sight," Cain said with authority and walked away towards the other side of the room.

Lee didn't need asking twice and immediately spun around to follow the marine down the corridor. His focus stayed on his daughter, who he could see over the marines' shoulder, sucking on the shoulder pad of his uniform. He saw Sykes out of the corner of his eye, seeing the delight in the rookie's face at the scene walking down the hall.

When they finally reached the family quarters the marine gently placed the little girl on the floor and left as he wiped the drool off his shoulder.

Lee just sat numbly on the bed and stared at the wall. He had naively thought that if he found the Galactica again, then everything would go back to normal, and that he and Kara would start again from before they were torn apart. But now Lee knew he couldn't go back to that time, because during that week, they had both changed their lives forever.

Lee's attention was suddenly drawn to his chest as he felt something snagging at his dogtags, he looked down and saw his son pulling on the end and examining them closely. Lee felt his heart melt as he watched his enthralled son and then peered over at his daughter who seemed happy to play with her feet on the floor.

Lee pulled back his dogtags as his son started to suck on the end, "hey, you don't want to eat them, they probably don't taste very nice." But his son seemed to disagree and reached out again before starting to cry when Lee pulled them away.

"Frak, hold on," Lee said and walked into the adjoining bathroom to quickly rinse his tags under the faucet. "Knock yourself out kiddo," he added letting his son grab at them again and start sucking on the end.

Lee was just about to start thinking that he wasn't doing too badly with two children, when he walked back into the main room, which was empty.

"Frak," he called out and started rapidly searching the quarters for his daughter, holding his son flush to his chest as he went. Finally he found her under a table in the adjoining room happily gurgling away to herself. "Well, I guess you can crawl."

It all went downhill from then on.

A few hours later and Lee found himself wanting to scream along with his crying children who seemed determined not to settle down. After shouting at a marine, he had been given a bag full of baby things, which obviously belonged to Kara. He had finally managed to clean and change the twins when they started screaming again. Figuring they must be hungry, Lee had sent the marine out again to go in search of powdered milk or mush.

As he awaited the marine's return, Lee surveyed the room. He had completely trashed the place in the space of a few hours. Mercifully the marine quickly returned as the babies started crying loudly. They were still wailing as Lee attempted in vain to mix up the formula, but all he managed to do was slip and send the powder exploding across the room.

"Frak!"

As the babies screamed louder at their father's outburst, Lee spun around to leave the room. He would spring Kara out of the frakking brig if he had to.

But he didn't need to bother.

As Lee looked up there she was, standing in the hatchway looking contrite and slightly flushed. As if on cue the noise in the room suddenly dulled as the two parents looked intently at each other, neither knowing what to say.

To be continued...


	29. Finding the Words Part Two

Chapter 28

_Earlier that morning_

The raptor made its way slowly out of Galactica's docking bay, piloted by Racetrack who was sharing an intense conversation with Skulls over which ship was better, the bucket or the beast? Kara enjoyed the spectacle as it was getting quite animated, with Racetrack believing the Galactica to be the more impressive ship, mainly due to the better crew. Skulls on the other hand chose the beast as it was newer and shinier.

"Which do you think is the best Starbuck?" called Racetrack over her shoulder.

"The bucket, hands down," replied Kara as she struggled to keep the twins still on her lap. It was their first time flying in a raptor and the only word to describe them was "hyperactive." They were squirming around in Kara's lap and kicking away excitedly. "Hey calm down."

"Your kiddies getting excited about flying?" asked Racetrack.

"Yeah, and they won't stay still."

"You can tell they're your kids, born to fly."

Kara hadn't thought of that, she looked down at her children and smiled. She usually saw very little of herself in them, which she had considered to be a blessing, but at least they seemed to share her love for flying. Their happiness was working to make her trip to the beast slightly more bearable. As they neared her, Kara couldn't help but feel apprehensive. Cain had not come across as being the conscientious leader of a Battlestar and there was something that unnerved her about its crew.

Joseph and Lena kept wriggling about and flapping their arms happily until the raptor finally landed with a gentle bump. They then looked up at their mother with wide blue eyes as if they were asking "is that it?"

Kara kissed the top of their heads before walking to the opening hatchway, which revealed Cain standing just outside with her hands on her hips. As she stepped out of the raptor, Kara could read the displeasure on the Admirals' face straight away. She handed the twins to Racetrack so she could jump down from the wing, but a stern voice stopped her from turning and collecting them, thinking that due to what was going to happen next, it was best to keep them away from the angry looking Admiral.

"What are _they_?" repeated Cain. The rest of the deck seemed to have come to a standstill, eager to see the impending argument.

"They're babies, Sir," replied Kara, stating the obvious to such a stupid question.

"I _know _what they are Captain, I mean, what are they doing on my Battlestar?"

"They're _my _babies, and seen as you saw fit to reassign me here, they come with me."

"Well you can turn around and put them back on the raptor. I will not have children on this ship."

"Then I go with them."

Cain walked up to Kara until she was close as she could be without coming into contact. "I've read your file Captain. It seems you have a problem with following orders, so I should warn you that I am not to be messed with."

Kara had guessed by the disapproving looks in the conference room that Cain had read her file. Guessing that she would kick up a storm about her babies, Kara had spent ages trying to find a copy of the Colonial Fleet manual in order to look up her rights, after much cussing she had finally found a part that could help.

"Fleet rules state that they have to stay with me."

"Actually they state that children are entitled to stay with at least one parent, so you can send them back to their father."

"Well he's already on the Pegasus," Kara blurted out before she had a chance to think about what she was saying.

Cain raised her eyebrow slightly, making Kara step back slightly looking contrite, but finally out of the Admiral's face. "MajorAdama I presume?"

Kara tried to keep her expression as neutral as possible, "so my children are staying with me here or on the Galactica."

"What did I say about questioning my orders _Captain_?"

"I really don't give a frak, _sir_," replied Kara, knowing straight away that she had gone too far and that she had messed with the wrong person.

Cain quickly turned to her marines and ordered them to escort Kara to the brig and then ordered Racetrack to take the twins to her quarters.

"What!?" shouted out Kara in protest. "You can't do that!"

"I am the Admiral of this fleet pilot; I can do whatever I want."

Kara pushed away as the marines came up and grabbed her arm, she knew she shouldn't struggle and had no chance against several gunnies but the cries of her children as they were taken away spurred her into violent action. She kicked and punched out until she felt a sharp knock to the side of her head, her knees giving out from the shock of the blow. The marines, seizing the chance, grabbed her arms and lifted her by the legs sweeping her off the floor.

Kara continued to struggle violently and shout out despite her dizziness, only stopping when she knew it was useless to continue, which was after being carried down many corridors.

"Come on, put me the frak down, I can walk."

The four marines look down and, seeing that she had finally stopped struggling, dropped her on her ass. They then pulled her up by her arms and guided her to the brig. She was resolutely silent as she entered the modern looking brig, which was completely different from the drab cells on board the Galactica. As they walked her through, Kara suddenly gasped, and walked up to the glass before she could be pulled back. Lying on the floor she saw the emaciated frame of the woman identical to one of her previous tormentors. The woman looked broken and obviously abused.

"What do you think of our little pet?" asked one of the marines before grabbing Kara's arm violently and spinning her around.

"I'm thinking that you might have to drag my ass into my cell after all," replied Kara before pulling her free arm back and swinging a strong punch to the side of his face, sending him flying to the floor.

The marine laughed as his three friends launched forward and wrestled Kara to the ground; she didn't put up much resistance as they dragged her into a cell and left her slumped on the floor.

* * *

It had been hours since Cain had ordered her removal to the brig and Kara was now bored, choosing to fill the time by doing some press-ups. The anger was resonating through her body at how stupid she had been to push the Admiral to the limit. The guilt was also overwhelming, guilt and worry at where her children were now. She knew that no harm would come to them, but she was worried about who was taking care of them.

Half of her expected Lee to be standing outside her cell when she heard the shuffle of feet. She expected him to look at her with his usual disapproving look. Kara lowered herself to the floor, remembering fondly the moment Lee had come to see her just hours before the annihilation of the Twelve Colonies. Her heart had been racing as his perfect arms leaned against the bars.

"_This looks familiar."_

Kara had had to suppress the urge to reach out through those bars, grab his tanks and pull him into a deep kiss.

A loud banging sound brought Kara rudely out of her reverie and she saw a familiar group of marines outside her cell. Rolling her eyes she got to her feet and stood alert. She had seen enough of the Pegasus crew to know that she had to be ready for anything as they opened the door.

"Well, aren't I popular," she said sarcastically.

"The Galactica's crew seem to have an attitude problem, don't you think Chalmers?" said the marine, who had a bruise on his cheek, to his companion.

"I agree."

"Think we may need to teach her lesson, don't you?"

Kara stood her ground fearlessly, her arms folded in front of her chest, as the marines walked closer. She knew that she was impossibly outnumbered, but backing down without first putting up a fight was not in Kara's vocabulary. Her first threw out the first punch, suddenly striking the nearest marine who happened to be the man she had hit earlier, but he didn't recoil as much this time. The other marines were on her in seconds, soon pinning her arms behind her back. Then she felt the first blow, which set her cheek on fire, followed by a sharp hit to her stomach that knocked the wind out of her. Kara doubled over from the pain, the marines holding her arms stopping her from collapsing to the floor.

The marine dealing out the blows was the same person who Kara had already hit twice herself. He leaned down and pulled her head back by her hair. "You know guys, she's actually pretty cute."

Kara struggled as she was pulled backwards violently, "hey!" Sudden panic was now overcoming her, dread at what the marines were intending for her.

"What the frak is going on here!?" shouted out a voice that Kara was learning to recognise. The marines immediately loosened their grip sending her once again crashing to the deck. They stood to attention. "I don't remember giving you any orders to mistreat a superior officer."

"No, Sir."

"Then I suggest you leave before I have you all thrown in the brig."

The marines swiftly left leaving Kara alone in her cell with Cain. Kara held her stomach as she pushed herself off the floor, her cheek and head were throbbing, her dislike for the Pegasus cemented.

"Lovely crew you have, _Sir_," said Kara with spite, but Cain seemed to ignore the jibe. "Where are my children?"

"With their father."

Kara felt as if she had been punched in the gut again, "you son-of-bitch," she said walking right up to Cain who seemed undeterred.

"You'd be wise to step away Captain."

"And you'd better step out of this cell before I do something I really won't regret."

Cain smiled, "I see you don't disappoint Captain."

"What?" asked Kara, slightly confused.

"I've read your file. I'm glad to see having children hasn't softened you up."

"What do you want?"

"I need a CAG with guts, who will get things done, seeing as my current CAG holds the rank of Major I believe your rank has to reflect the same."

"You're promoting me?"

"Effective immediately," said Cain as she walked out of the cell leaving the door open.

Kara followed her tentatively, "fine, I'll be your CAG, but first tell me where my children are."

"Family quarters, follow the marine Major Adama has running around for him."

Kara watched as Cain left the brig. She was completely in shock, but the hard part was yet to come. Part of her was relieved that she didn't have to be the one to tell Lee about their children, which she knew was cowardly, but she had spent months unsuccessfully trying to work out the words to say. At least with Cain stepping in it had been quick.

But now Kara was walking down the corridors with her head down, trying to find the words to explain what had happened, she was still clueless.

* * *

Cain had been right; Kara only had to follow a flustered looking marine as he ran down the corridor with what looked like powdered milk in his hand. She grimaced, knowing that her kids would immediately show their displeasure at being fed that crap. Pausing around the corner she could hear Lee's cussing and the cries of her disgruntled babies, she bit back the anger, knowing that they could be a handful and Lee was probably trying his best, as usual.

When she stepped into the open hatchway, she had not been prepared for the scene of utter destruction before her. There were items of clothing, diapers, bottles, blankets and powdered milk strewn everywhere, making her understand what the swearing was about. Kara felt the guilt overpowering her anger. Lee had not been prepared for this, he was obviously completely overwhelmed.

_This was a really frakked up way to find out you're a father._

Suddenly Lee spun around and his eyes locked with Kara across the room, entranced. The room silenced as Joseph and Lena gazed up upon seeing their parents in the same room for the first time in their young lives, probably in awe of wondering what was going to happen next. For what seemed like an eternity their parents just stared at each other until they remembered why they had been crying in the first place, they were hungry. Kara broke off her gaze to look down at her son who was now sobbing away loudly, she leant down and lifted him up into her arms and then started searching around the room for the right blanket.

"Frak Lee, do you think you could've trashed the room more?" she said as she threw various items aside with her free hand until finally she found what she was looking for.

"That's rich, coming from the woman who had one of the most untidy apartments I've ever seen."

"Yeah, well, I wasn't really living in it then was I?" replied Kara, not knowing why she was rehashing an old argument between them. She stormed towards the adjoining room with Joseph still wailing against her shoulder.

"Where the frak are you going?" asked Lee following her.

"They need feeding, and unless you've developed certain "assets" then it's up to me," replied Kara shortly.

Lee kept watching as Kara sat in a chair with her back to him and lifted her tank. Joseph stopped crying as he obviously started feeding from his mother, making Lee feel completely inadequate. He went and picked up his daughter as she too had begun wailing. He bounced her gently but was getting nowhere. After what seemed like ages Kara finally emerged carrying a now content looking baby. They silently swapped children and Kara disappeared back into the adjoining room to feed their daughter.

After a little while Joseph started struggling in Lee's arms until he sat him on the floor and he crawled away to play with some of the blankets strewn on the floor. Lee couldn't help but feel like a complete failure as a parent. He slouched down to the floor and leaned against the side of the bed, his arms resting on his outstretched legs. His feelings of failure were compounded when Kara re-entered the room carrying another quiet and content baby. She set the little girl down on the floor before sitting in front of Lee.

The babies crawled to her immediately and grabbed at her outstretched legs, playing happily together on the floor between them, Lee found it was magnetic to watch them. After several minutes he realised that neither he nor Kara had said anything to each other for far too long. He looked up at her and found that she was staring intently towards him. _How long has she been watching me?_

But still the silence continued, except this time their attention was focused on each other.

Kara was the one to break first, "guess it's too late for the "I'm pregnant" speech huh?"

Lee couldn't help but laugh briefly at Kara's blatantly obvious statement, but then turned serious again. "Were you ever going to tell me?"

"Of course I would, do you think I wanted you to find out like this?"

"I really don't know Kara, I don't know much about anything anymore. How...how did this happen?"

"Would you like me to draw you a diagram?" Kara said in a deadpan voice.

"You know what I mean."

"It's pretty simple Lee, we frakked...a lot. I got pregnant."

"Weren't you on that patch or injection?" asked Lee, ignoring Kara's jibe.

"Apparently it wasn't compatible with cylon drugs," said Kara and then added. "When I was shot, the toasters must've given me some drugs that counter-acted my patch's effectiveness."

"And you didn't notice?"

"Why the frak would I?"

"It's your body Kara, didn't you have a...you know, it was over a month later that we..."

Kara rolled her eyes at Lee's inability to say the actual words, "With the patch you're supposed to have a regular cycle, anyway it's not as if I ever kept track of the stupid thing. Why are we even arguing about this?"

"I just want to know everything."

"Why?"

"_Why?" _asked Lee exasperated. "Kara, I finally find you after searching for over a year and I come home to find I'm the father of two children and you've turned all domesticated, forgive me for being a _little _bit shocked."

"You think that you're shocked Lee? Try waking up from a coma, all alone in a strange place, not knowing if the cylons still have you, and then looking down to find out you're heavily pregnant. I thought I was in one of those frakking farms!"

Lee didn't have a response to that; he couldn't imagine how terrified she must have been, how she must have found out that she had been the only one to be rescued from the cylons. The more he thought about what Kara had gone through, the more he found his anger ebbing away.

"I don't even know their names," he said at last.

Kara smiled and looked down at their children tenderly. "This little guy is Joseph and this is Selena," she said, stroking their heads.

"Hey," said Lee looking down at his children, but their attention was firmly on their mother. "Frak."

"They're shy Lee, they'll get used to you. They used to hide from your dad too."

"My dad knows that I'm...?"

"Erm, yeah, it's a long story, but basically I kinda blurted it out."

"Everyone knows, don't they? That's why everyone's been looking at me strangely? At first I thought it was because I had come back from the dead, but evidently they were all wondering if I had found out yet."

"A lot happened when you were away Lee, it's hard to explain."

The silence between them crept back again, the only noises that could be heard was the gentle humming from the Pegasus and the playful squeals in front of them. Suddenly Lena scrambled around on all fours, noticing that her mother was preventing any escape bids with her legs she crawled towards the figure that was unknown to her. Lee felt his heart race as his daughter suddenly crawled right up to him and started pulling on his tank. He lifted her up placing her on his leg, and she grabbed straight for his dogtags.

"Why do they love these things? They can't taste too good and they're dirty."

"They're teething Lee, they love anything they can get in there mouth. Its fine, they can't swallow them and the tags go through the showers as much as you do."

"True," replied Lee and watched as his daughter pulled and sucked at the tags with glee. "Well, at least they're easy to entertain."

Kara smiled, "they'll get used to you, I mean, I've already told them all about you, shown them pictures. Lena even sleeps with one of your old tanks, screams the ship down if I forget it."

"Hey Lena, I'm your dad," said Lee directly to his daughter who was looking up at him with big blue attentive eyes. "I'm the guy who's going to chase all your future boyfriends away with a big stick,"

Kara laughed, "Only if I don't get there first." She leant down and pulled Joseph into her arms, who promptly curled up into a little ball. "Frak, another few months and they'll be answering us back."

"If they're anything like you then we're doomed."

"Luckily they're nothing like me."

"Their smiles and cunning adventurousness are _definitely _from you."

Kara smiled, relief washing over her that for now things seemed to be going as well as could be expected. Lee was obviously still stunned about finding out he was a father, but now that the twins had calmed down he was starting to bond with them. Joseph soon wriggled out of her lap, and also crawled over to Lee with curiosity.

Kara sat happily watching her little family reunite as they climbed all over his legs and pulled at his tanks.

She was under no illusions, she knew that things would not be easy and that they could not go back to the way they were, everything had changed. But for now, he was here, she was here, and they had their children in front of them, and that was all that mattered.

* * *

Lee awoke suddenly the following morning. At first he thought that the last two days had been a wonderful dream and he was waking up to the reality of being stuck on the Pegasus without Kara and their beautiful babies didn't really exist. Then he realised that he wasn't in his rack, but had woken up on a sofa in one of the family quarters.

He looked over quickly to the other side of the room and smiled as he saw Kara lying on her side on the bed, her back to him, still in her tanks and underwear. Lee had to resist the temptation to stare at her ass that peaked out of her military issue briefs. He stood up and walked over towards the bed. Lee was still unprepared to see his children, _their _children sleeping next to Kara. She was guarding them protectively with a pillow up against her to stop them rolling over. His little family were sleeping soundly.

It was truly like a dream.

They had barely spoken that evening, the words not needing to be said yet. They had just sat there in silence, watching their children before exhaustion had set in. Lee had watched in awe as Kara with seeming ease got the twins bathed and ready for bed. They had fallen asleep immediately, closely followed by their parents.

Lee knew that he and Kara had a long way to go, but right now she was lying in front of him, protecting their children. They looked so angelic as they slept soundly, blissfully unaware of the horrors that their civilization had gone through.

The babies started to stir whilst Lee was in the shower, their small cries of attention awakening Kara in an instant. The quiet was now broken by the wonderful sound of wailing babies who wanted to start their day, regardless of their tired parents. They were especially hyperactive due to their new surroundings and wanted to explore.

Kara set them down on the floor with their toys just as Lee came out of the shower. He noticed that a bruise, which had been merely red the night before, had now formed into a nice bruise on her cheek. He had wanted to ask her about it last night, but had been a little incapable of finding the words.

"Hey," they both said to each casually, still at a bit of a loss for words.

"You've got a nice shiner there; care to tell me what happened?"

Kara lifted her hand to her cheek and winced, "you should see the bump on my head. I had a little visit in the brig from some lovely marines."

"What? And they beat you up?"

"I think they wanted a bit more than that," said Kara matter-of-factly.

"I'm going to frakking kill them."

"In case you'd forgotten Lee, I can fight my own battles. It wasn't a big deal, I got a bit knocked about and then Cain ordered them away."

Lee was silent as he paced around the room obviously irate.

"Can you watch them while I take a shower?" asked Kara, trying to break through his mood.

"Err sure," said Lee a little tentatively. "How did you used to get a shower, before I came back?"

"I've got a nanny who comes in the mornings, Megan, she's good with them."

"Oh right."

_I can cope for ten minutes whilst Kara gets ready,_ were Lee's fateful thoughts as Kara entered the bathroom. Inevitably, Joseph then decided that he needed a diaper change and started screaming out his demands. Lee grabbed up his son and started bouncing him on his hip to try and calm him down.

"Hey, what's up? Mum hasn't gone far," said Lee, still not used to referring to Kara as "mum." The smell that reached Lee's nostrils told him exactly what was wrong. "You couldn't wait ten minutes huh?" Joseph's grin told him that he couldn't have waited.

Ten minutes later when Kara exited the shower, Lee was still struggling with the diaper.

"How much crap do babies produce?" asked Lee scrunching up his nose as Kara threw on her clothes.

"You'll want to tuck it in there," said Kara pointing to the diaper.

"I didn't do that yesterday and it was fine, won't that make it too tight?"

"No," replied Kara exasperated. "You're just folding it wrong."

"Fine, whatever," said Lee, pausing a moment before laughing out loud.

"What's so funny?"

"Just never thought I would ever have an argument with you about how to fold a diaper," replied Lee as he tickled Joseph slightly. "All done," he said with a smile, which was soon wiped from his face when he lifted Joseph and it promptly fell off on to the floor.

Kara stood looking at him, her hands on her hips. "Do I really need to say anything?" she said biting back the urge to laugh out loud.

"Not one frakking word Kara," he said. He was about to start again when he felt something wet hitting his chest.

"I was going to _say_ that baby boys can aim."

Lee couldn't believe that he had already been defeated by a six month old baby; he _definitely _was his mother's son. Kara held out her arms and Lee promptly handed over Joseph. He took off his tanks revealing his strong abs underneath, which Kara couldn't help but admire, even though he had lost a considerable amount of weight.

"I'm going to, ah, change my tanks."

"Okay, we're going to go in search of mush."

Lee walked over to Kara and placed a soft kiss on top of his son's head and then bent down to where Lena was playing and did the same before exiting the quarters.

* * *

Kara had missed Lee's presence immediately, the sudden loss dulling the hilarity of seeing him attempting unsuccessfully to change the diaper. She had no idea what was going to happen in the days to come, but she knew instinctively that it wasn't going to be easy. She also had no idea what Cain's true intentions were in making her the CAG, which she hadn't gotten round to telling Lee about yet.

As she took her babies to get some food, she had been approached by a young officer who informed her that she was expected to take over for the afternoon briefing at 1600 hours.

Kara had finally found the mess hall and fed her babies, ignoring the stares from the Pegasus crew. It was attention that she was getting annoyingly used to. On the way back to her quarters, Kara turned the corner, with Joseph and Lena wrapped close to her chest in a sling, receiving another shock that was completely unexpected.

"Sam?"

The man she had left for dead on Caprica had somehow made it to the Pegasus. Anders bounded over in his military garb, slinging his gun towards his back. They were in two minds whether or not to hug, but Kara stepped back.

"How, I don't understand?"

"Long story short?"

"Please."

"The Pegasus went back to Caprica and rescued us," he said briefly before adding. "I understand most of it was Apollo's plan."

Kara was speechless; _Lee had gone back to Caprica to rescue Sam?_

"I see you've got your hands full, so I'll..." Anders turned to walk away, looking obviously hurt.

"Sam, wait," said Kara, the guilt wrenching through her.

"I never stopped thinking about you, but then back on Caprica all I was doing each day was surviving."

"I wanted to come back."

"I know, your Apollo told me," said Anders calmly. "I could guess, you know, when I met you that there was someone else in your life. As soon as met him, I knew. He loves you."

"Sam..."

"It's okay, really. We didn't make any promises to each other, so it's okay."

"It just happened, we're..."

"He didn't tell me about you two, but we did talk about this." Kara watched as Anders removed her tag from around his neck. He had obviously been planning this meeting for a while. "Apollo said it was up to you to decide. So you can either take this back and we're over. I'll walk away, no anger or resentment. Or I keep it and we still have a chance, maybe not today or tomorrow but sometime in the future."

* * *

After changing out of his soiled tank, Lee had been ordered to Cain's quarters. He had sighed in frustration but reported there straight away. Fortunately the Admiral had been in one of her more generous moods, stating that she was transferring Megan the nanny to the Pegasus. When she was not needed for the children she was to report to the kitchens. Cain had then told him about Kara's promotion to CAG. Lee had been expecting such a move as Kara was the kind of officer that she liked. He was also secretly glad as it meant he would have more time for covertly moving the hidden refugees on board the Tylium ship. It had only been two days since they had found the Galactica, but he need to make a move in the next couple of days before the rations started to run low. He would need to liaise with Anders in order to formulate the plan.

_Frak! Anders, I forgot to tell Kara..._

Lee couldn't believe that he'd forgotten to tell her Anders was on the Pegasus. He had been too wrapped up in his new family to remember.

He saw Kara again at the afternoon briefing and stood by her side as she gave the first debriefing to her pilots. Thoughts of how he was going to broach the subject spun through his head, part of him also didn't want to say anything.

"Okay everyone, dismissed," said Kara bringing the briefing to an end. The pilots in turn each unenthusiastically rose from their chairs and slumped out of the room, obviously unimpressed with their new CAG. "Well they're fun," she said turning to Lee. They were now alone in the Ready Room, which was nearly double the size of the one on the Galactica.

"Kara, there's something..." Lee began when suddenly he saw a glint of light shining off Kara's chest. He looked down at the normal chain that hung from her neck. An extra tag had appeared along with a ring, which he recognised as being the one that Zak had given to her. Kara was silent as Lee took the items into his hand and then looked into her deep green eyes. "What does this mean?"

Kara wished she knew all of the answers, she really did. She wished that they could be a happy family and forget all the pain and suffering the cylons had inflicted, but it was not that simple. They were both still healing. They needed time to have each other in their lives again. If they pushed too soon, it would ruin them forever.

The only thing Kara _was_ certain of for the future was that Anders was not going to be part of it. She hoped they could still be friends, after all he had done nothing wrong, but Lee had always been the one that owned her soul, and it was time she stopped denying this inevitability. The guilt had ripped through her as she held out her hand and asked for her tag back. He had not been resentful, just turned and walked away, only turning back to say she suited being a mum.

And now she was standing in front of Lee, feeling his gentle breath against her face, his piercing blue eyes, her children's eyes, boring through her. Kara felt her heart start to race and the tears pooling in her eyes.

"It means I've made a choice, Lee."


	30. Sabotage

Chapter 29

When Lee awoke the following morning in his rack, which was back in the officers' quarters, he was still in shock. It took him a full five minutes for the realisation that he was a father to hit him, knocking the wind out of him yet again. His last conversation with Kara played over in his mind; _it means I've made a choice Lee._ He had no idea what she had meant by that and she wouldn't elaborate, instead she had simply walked away and he had not seen her since. All Lee knew is that she had taken back the dogtag she had given to Anders and that could only be a good thing as far as he was concerned. The rejected man looked ashen as Lee entered the enlisted Mess and sat down at his table. They were silent at first, each regarding the other.

"Well at least she hasn't given _you_ her dogtag yet," said Anders slightly bitterly. "I understand congratulations are in order?"

"What do you mean?"

"On finding out you're a father, they're cute."

"Oh, yeah," said Lee blushing slightly from the pride. "They're great."

"Thanks for telling me about you two by the way, not that I hadn't guessed myself."

"That was up to her to tell you, not me," replied Lee, to which Anders nodded his agreement.

"I'm just glad she's okay. When you told me about her capture, I thought the worst; I thought we'd never see her again."

"I know what you mean, when I saw her in that viper..." Lee stopped, there were many things he could say to describe how he felt at that moment, but Anders was not the one he wanted to discuss it with. He looked around the room ensuring that no-one could overhear their discussion. "Look, the reason why I came here is because we need to think up a plan to get the refugees off the Tylium ship."

"What have you got in mind? Because I have no idea, Cain watches everything and there is no way that we could just offload the occupants or send the ship down to the planet."

"We'll need to provide a distraction, who can you trust and rely on?"

"You can rely on me and Barolay to help."

"Good, be ready to act at short notice."

"Are you going to think of the plan?" asked Anders.

"Yeah, and I may ask the help of someone who knows how to think outside the box." At that, Lee stood up from the table and walked out of the Mess. He knew exactly who he needed to see in order to formulate a plan, hopefully she wouldn't tell him to frak off.

Lee walked straight to Kara's quarters. Even though Cain had technically given the quarters to him, she had made it perfectly clear that they were not to share them. It seemed out of the question to keep Kara away from their children, so he had gone back to the officer's bunk room without argument.

When he reached the hatch, he noted that it was slightly ajar and could hear the sounds of his children giggling loudly. He tapped lightly before entering. His little family was seated around a small table, with Joseph and Lena in little high-chairs. Kara had obviously tidied and shipped more things over from the Galactica.

"Hey," she said before digging a spoon into a bowl of mush that the babies were clearly unimpressed with. Every time Kara went near them with the spoon their mouths closed tightly and most of the gloop ended up on their chin and down their fronts. "Come on, it isn't that bad," she moaned and took a mouthful herself, "see."

Lee laughed as Kara's mouth suddenly turned into a grimace, "guess it is that bad huh?"

Kara spat out the mush into a tissue, "my gods that stuff tastes like crap, and I thought it was bad on the Galactica. Sorry kiddos you don't have a choice, this is the best mush they have." She tried again to spoon some food into Joseph's mouth, which was only half successful and he looked very unimpressed with the taste. "Okay, let's make a deal, if you eat this crap, mom will have the rest, is that fair?"

"You can't make deals with a baby, Kara."

But Kara wasn't listening, she was intent on zooming the spoon towards Joseph, "viper coming in to land, open the hatch!" Joseph only seemed to half understand, opening his mouth at the last moment and taking a mouthful of the mush. "That's it, knew you could do it kiddo."

Lee laughed, "guess you can then."

"We make a lot of deals don't we?" said Kara to the babies as she zoomed another spoonful towards Lena who ate it down happily. "So did you come here just to watch the kiddies eat breakfast?" she asked in a friendly tone of voice.

Lee sat down opposite her and took another spoon, "I have to see if I can completely fail at something else," he said with a grin.

"If I can do it, anyone can."

"Are you kidding me? You're a natural at this."

Kara laughed with slight disbelief, "I'm a natural _pilot_ Lee, but this is completely beyond me. You should have seen us when they were first born. I woke your dad up every other night to help me."

Lee found himself slightly saddened to hear that his father had to help with the babies. He should have been the one to wake up every night and comfort his children. He spooned up some of the mush and Lena swallowed it down happily. "I should have been here."

"It's not your fault, Lee."

"I know, it just..." his conversation was broken off by a knock at the door and a very cheery looking girl came bundling in.

"Hi Sir, oh sorry, I didn't realise..." she said and started to back out the hatch.

Kara stood up from the table, "it's okay Meg, this is Lee."

They greeted each other cordially and then Megan took over the feeding. It was coming up to the 0900 hours briefing so Kara and Lee both exited the quarters and made their way to the Ready room. A very boring 30 minutes later and it was finally over. Lee lingered behind after the rest of the pilots had left and then closed the hatch. Kara stared over at him from behind her lectern, suspecting that he wanted to discuss something important. Part of her hoped that he didn't want to talk about "them," the past few days had been enough, and she really wasn't ready for that talk yet. She knew that inevitably the discussion was needed, but hoped to avoid it until at least the shock of having him finally home subsided.

She looked on as Lee seemed to look around the room and inspected all the nooks and crannies.

"What's wrong Lee?"

"I just want to make sure that we're alone."

"Trust me we are, I don't think I could bribe those pilots to stay a moment longer."

"I need to be sure."

"Okay," said Kara, elongating the word. "Look Lee if this is about..."

"It's not," said Lee cutting her off. "But we will talk about that one day."

Kara was slightly stunned as Lee carried on searching the room, at last stopping and taking a seat at the front of the room. "Care to tell me what that was all about?"

"I can't risk anyone overhearing."

"Why? What have you done?" She was starting to get worried.

"I think you already know that the Pegasus went back to Caprica."

"Yeah, I guessed that much."

"I was going to tell you, but with everything else..."

"It's okay Lee, really. So what happened on Caprica?"

"Cain ordered all able bodied people to be brought on board the Pegasus to work. Everyone else was to be abandoned on Caprica."

"What?"

"The cylons had gone so the group you found went looking for survivors, they found about another hundred people hiding, forty of them children."

"And Cain ordered them to be left behind? That son-of-a-bitch, I knew she was frakked up, but killing children?"

"I know what you're thinking," said Lee calmly, seeing that Kara was getting increasingly irate.

"What I'm thinking is that I should put a bullet between the Admiral's eyes, she's going to get the remains of humanity frakking killed!"

"Calm down Kara, I never said that I followed her orders," he stood up and walked towards the lectern, noting that Kara was now smiling deviously.

"You really have been around me too long. What did you do?"

"There are currently about a hundred refugees hiding on board that Tylium ship."

"And you need a plan to get them off don't you?"

Lee rested his arms on the lectern and leant forward towards Kara. They both felt their hearts quicken at the close proximity. "I need somebody who knows how to think outside the box," he said with a smile.

"Well you've come to the right person, what sort of thing did you have in mind?"

"Just a plan, I'll do the rest."

"You brought me into this Lee, now you _know_ that I will not just sit back and watch."

"Trust me, if this goes wrong and Cain finds out, then she won't hesitate to throw our asses out of the nearest airlock. I don't give a frak about me, but our kids need their mother."

Kara was taken aback, she knew that it would be risky to go behind Cain's back but she was used to risking her life every time she sat in her viper. What mattered was that her children would be safe, and part of their survival meant going against Cain wherever possible. "Lee, when are you going to learn? Starbuck _never_ gets caught, and I will not stand by and sacrifice the lives of those people on that ship."

"What if..."

"We won't, trust me," she said with her wide Starbuck smile.

* * *

Later that afternoon and Lee was on the hangar deck awaiting the new President of the Twelve Colonies, Gaius "frakking" Baltar and a soiree of reporters. The news of the Pegasus' arrival had evidently reached the planet and the President had demanded an immediate meeting with the new Admiral of the Fleet.

Baltar's ship was the first to arrive and Cain greeted him with the usual courtesy she bestowed upon everyone else. Her voice was strong, unwavering and straight to the point. Lee just stood by and pretended to watch, keeping his hatred of the Admiral at bay. He could see Anders at the other side of the room also watching. They nodded discreetly to each other, a silent acknowledgement.

The plan had been made and it was going to start tonight.

The minutes were dragging by like hours and it seemed a lifetime ago when he and Kara had formulated their plan. It had been mostly her out of the box ideas mixed with his knowledge of who could be trusted on board the Pegasus. Anders had already been fully briefed and was standing by, ready to play his part. Kara was currently on a trip to the Galactica under the guise of collecting a few more items from her old quarters, but really she was going to see his father. If the plan was going to succeed then they would need his help.

Another raptor soon docked with the Pegasus and with it came the group of reporters. Lee guessed that they were eager to hear from the Admiral. He never expected their reaction when they saw him.

"Major Adama, Major Adama," called one female reporter with short red hair. "Welcome back to the fleet."

Lee glanced around and saw Cain looking over, the confusion etched across her face. Baltar on the other hand seemed envious of the attention he was getting as the reporters surrounded him. Lee had no idea what they wanted; all he knew was that they were flocked around him and all talking at once.

"Major Adama, are you happy to be home?"

"Yes, of course I am."

"Have you been reunited with your children Major?" asked the female again as she pushed to the front.

_Did the whole frakking fleet know about him and Kara? _"Err, yes I have as a matter of fact," he replied tentatively. _I think I've missed something here..._

"What say you to the repeated requests from the Gemenon representative for access to your children?"

"What?! What the frak are you talking about?" _I've definitely missed something._

"The Gemenon representative has made numerous requests to Ms Thrace, requesting to see your children, so her people can say prayers, has she not told you?"

"Told me about what? I really don't know what you're talking about," said Lee as he tried to back away. He could feel Cain's eyes burning away at the back of his neck.

"Your children are the first set of twins born since the end of the Worlds, Major," added a male reporter Lee did not recognise. "Gemenese stories talk of a set of twins born during the exodus of the Twelve Colonies and they would be our saviour."

Lee felt as if he was being backed into a corner, the reporters were herded around him and it seemed as if the room was closing in on him. He never thought he would be so happy to hear Cain's voice booming across the deck.

"What is going on here?" she shouted causing the reporters to back away slightly. Lee turned towards her and couldn't stop the blush that washed over his face. He saw Baltar speaking into her ear and then her eyebrow rose. "Major Adama, do you consent to any persons having access to your children?"

"No, Sir," he replied quickly.

"Then I suggest all of you need to report to the conference room." she said, addressing the reporters, "If I find out that any of you has harassed my crew again then you will all be off my ship, do I make myself clear?"

There was a general murmuring amongst the group as they quickly dispersed and headed away from the deck, no doubt towards the conference room with Baltar and Cain soon following them. Lee breathed a sigh of relief even though he was still a bit clueless as to what that was all about. He looked across the deck and noticed that Anders was looking over intently, a look of rejection written across his face.

Lee didn't have the time to sympathise with him; instead his attention was focused on his children and what the reporters had been talking about. _The saviours of the fleet? _Lee made a mental note to sit Kara down and ask about that one. But for now he had some time to kill, it would seem like days before the night finally came.

* * *

Kara paced slowly around her new quarters, her stomach turning slightly from the apprehension. They were taking a big risk going behind Cain's back, and what they were about to do was tantamount to mutiny. If caught, they would be put in prison or killed. But it was risk that Kara was willing to take. If those people died on that Tylium ship then she would never be able to look her babies in the eyes again. Those children needed them and Kara was not someone to back away.

"You're going to wear a hole in the deck," said Lee who was sat at the table looking bored.

"I hate frakking around like this, what time is it?"

"Only 0100 hours."

"Frak," exclaimed Kara, they still had one more hour to wait.

Lee had pretended to go to bed in the officers' quarters before sneaking out at about 2330 hours. He had been quiet and so hopefully no-one noticed that him leaving. It was important not to draw attention to themselves because Cain was guaranteed to be suspicious after tomorrow night. If she found out that they had been wandering the corridors in the middle of the night then they would be caught out.

"Are you sure Megan is going to remember to come?" Lee asked.

"Of course she will, now who's the one worrying?"

"I never said I wasn't worried, I've just chosen to sit down instead of pace around the room."

Kara stopped walking and stared over at Lee. She had never believed that he was dead, but it still shocked her every time she set her eyes on him. A sudden noise coming from the other room made her turn reluctantly away.

"Do they usually wake up in the night?" asked Lee curiously, wanting to learn everything about his children.

"Sometimes, at one time they refused to sleep at all, which was fun."

Kara walked into the adjoining room and soon emerged with a sleepy looking Joseph over her shoulder, she rubbed his back gently to try and sooth his little sobs. "He didn't want to eat much last night, so I think he's hungry," she said, sitting down at the table. After a small pause she looked up at Lee.

"What?"

"Are you going to just sit there and watch?" she asked shortly.

"Oh," said Lee, only just realising what she was going to do. "I wouldn't miss this for the World."

Kara sighed, "fine." She lifted her tanks and Joseph started feeding immediately. Lee knew he shouldn't just stare outright at Kara's breast, but he was completely enthralled by the whole process.

After a few minutes of staring Lee said, "by the way, care to tell me why I was mobbed by the press today? Something about special babies?"

"The Gemenese have this stupid idea that because Lena and Joseph are the first set of twins born since the exodus they're the children mentioned in some stories. They want to see them and pray over them."

"That's ridiculous."

"Tell me about it, they went even crazier when they heard the Commander of the fleet's son is the father."

"How did they find _that_ out?"

"Two words, _frakking Baltar._"

Lee sighed, _frakking Baltar, _it figured, the man had no tact. Lee had disliked him _before_ the end of the Worlds, seeing his arrogance displayed on television. His hatred was cemented after Colonial Day.

"You're amazing, you know that?" said Lee as Joseph decided he was full. "Can I..?"

Kara smiled and covered herself up before handing their son over. Lee held him over his shoulder and gently rocked him whilst patting him on the back. Joseph fell asleep almost immediately and Lee laid him down in the cot.

"He prefers to sleep on his front," said Kara gently, wary of not making Lee feel like she was giving him a lecture. Lee didn't seem to take offence and turned Joseph around, who settled into a happy sleep. Both parents placed a kiss on top of his little head before they raised the edge on the side of the cot and then did the same for Lena.

They then went back to waiting with Lee sitting at the table and Kara pacing around the room. At last, after what seemed like an eternity, there was a soft rap at the door and then Megan entered quickly.

"I'm not too late am I? There was someone awake in my quarters so I had to wait around a bit longer," she whispered cheerfully.

"No, you're fine," said Kara. "Were you followed?"

"No, I double checked all the way, no-one is about."

"Good, the little ones are sound asleep so hopefully you won't have to do anything."

"Okay, good luck."

Lee stood up and turned to Megan, "are you sure that you're okay with this? It's a big risk if we're caught."

"I'm sure; anyway it would be easy for me to deny all knowledge. I'd just say Major Thrace called me in the middle of the night needing me to babysit."

Lee seemed satisfied with the response and so turned to Kara, "got what we need?"

Kara grinned widely and held up a large knife and a screwdriver.

"Is that it?"

"All the instruments you need for a bit of sabotage," she said happily and then rested her foot on a chair, lifted up her pants leg and sheathed the knife and screwdriver into her ankle holster. Lee laughed briefly before they went suddenly serious.

"Let's go."

They turned the lights off in the room leaving Megan in darkness. She waved as they opened the hatch and slipped out closing the hatch behind them. The corridor was dimly lit and empty. Lee had been living on the Pegasus the longest so he led the way, grabbing Kara's arm lightly. They ran quickly down the short corridor and around a corner, crouching down and sneaking as they went.

"How did you plan on getting down to the hangar deck?" whispered Kara in Lee's ear.

"The back way," replied Lee and walked to a panel on the wall. He promptly grabbed at the grating and pulled it away. "After you."

"Great," said Kara as she climbed through the hole into the gap between the outer and inner hull. It was a tight gap that dropped a long way down. "You bring me to all the nice places Lee."

Kara descended down the gap so Lee had enough room to enter above her and replace the grating. They kept silent as they focused on safely moving down the scaffolding until they reached the deck below them. It was difficult, but it concealed them from prying eyes. If they had gone down the corridors they would have had to move to the middle of the ship before winding back out again. The risk of being caught would have been too high. This way they could manoeuvre down to the deck below and then shuffle across until they reached the lower part of the hangar deck, right where the vipers were stored.

It was sweaty and long but finally they reached their destination. Kara crouched down and looked through the grating. The deck appeared to be deserted and dark so she opened up the panel and snuck out. She kept ducked down low and ran behind some crates to wait for Lee who was soon behind her. They could hear noses coming from the other side of the hangar as a few deck-hands worked on some vipers, but they were far enough away.

Kara looked to Lee and they both gave each other a silent nod. They quickly darted out from behind the crates and slipped in behind the row of vipers.

"I fixed the rota so she was one of the first in today, so her viper should be up at the far end," whispered Kara.

Lee nodded and motioned for them to move towards the rear of the row of vipers. After passing five dormant vipers they finally found the one they were looking for. Lee signalled and they ducked underneath her wing. "We need to be quick; I don't fancy our chances that those deckhands will stay up that end."

"Are you sure Showboat is good for this?"

"She's sound and a good pilot, she knows the risks."

Kara nodded and shuffled on her back so she was underneath the belly of the viper. Lee crouched down so he could keep an eye on what she was doing and watch the rest of the deck. Kara took out her screwdriver and knife and set about removing a small panel. Once open she then shoved her hands into its gut to find the right parts that she needed.

"Are you sure this will work?" whispered Lee.

Kara smiled before whispering back, "Trust me."

"Somehow that's not very comforting."

Kara rolled her eyes and focused on the task at hand. She finally found the right wires deep inside and pulled them out. She then started to cut away at the coating of the wire with her knife.

"What exactly are you doing?" asked Lee, their plan had only covered sabotaging a viper, leaving Kara to the exact method.

"I'm fraying the wires on Showboats' manoeuvring controls. When she goes out tomorrow the wires will fry and she'll have no pitch or yaw, the viper will only be able to go forwards."

"So how is she going to get back to the deck in one piece?"

"That's where I come in. I'll go out there and guide her back, all you need to do is use the ships' thrusters to push over and angle a way to the deck. Trust me, I've done it myself."

Lee looked slightly sceptical, "didn't know damaged wiring was a common a problem."

"It's not, but I was bored on the Triton and wanted to try it out."

"You sabotaged your own ship? You're more insane then I thought," he joked.

Kara shrugged, "I got back easily enough. The Chief put it down to the wires fraying on some sharp metal inside. I even made a simulation out of the scenario when I started teaching, to see if the nuggets could work out how to steer without manoeuvring controls."

"Anyone work it out?"

"A couple, they were the ones who ended up making good pilots. That idiot, Lieutenant Sykes, panicked and flew into another ship."

"You remember him?" asked Lee, recalling the loud and obnoxious pilot who had mouthed off about Kara being dragged down to the brig as if it was the funniest thing he had ever seen.

"How could I forget, he kept following me about like a lost puppy no matter how many times I told him to frak off," she said and stripped down the last of the wiring that she needed. "Nearly done."

Suddenly Lee heard a loud crash from the other side of the hangar, he looked up and saw two marines doing their rounds, and they were heading straight for them. Lee shifted quickly, accidentally knocking Kara's arm. She slipped and her knife sliced into her left palm.

"Frak," she said as quietly as possible, but the blood was already quickly pouring out. Lee placed his finger to his lips in order to indicate that silence was needed. The marines were closing in, hopefully they wouldn't see them but Lee didn't fancy their chances. He was about to pull Kara away to go and hide when he overheard the marines talking, realising that one of them was Anders.

As part of the plan, Anders was meant to try and keep any marines away from this part of hangar. Lee vaguely heard him making an excuse to the other marine about helping the deck-hands clean up the mess he had created. Lee breathed a sigh of relief as the marines spun around and headed towards the deckhands. He then looked down at Kara who was gripping her hand tightly.

"Shit, I'm sorry," he whispered and grabbed at the lining of his fatigue jacket, ripping off a strip. He took Kara's hand gently into his and wrapped the makeshift bandage around her palm. Kara winced as he tightened it into a knot. As soon as it was secure, Kara set about shoving all of the wires back into the viper's belly and then re-attached the panel.

Her hand was throbbing but she bit through the pain as they scrambled back into the hole and exited the hangar. It was an arduous climb, but finally they reached the upper deck and carefully climbed through the grating, replacing it securely behind them. They were about to round the corner when they suddenly heard a noise coming their way. Lee acted quickly and pulled Kara back down the corridor from where they had come and opened a hatchway that led to one of the storage rooms. They just managed to close the door and secure themselves inside as a number of crew members rounded the corner.

The small room was pitch black and silent as they waited for the crew to go past. Kara felt the walls closing in around her and her heart began to beat faster and faster, her body trembling all over and she found she couldn't control her breathing. She was gasping, trying desperately to inflate her lungs. The pain in her hand resonated throughout her body. Memories of feeling trapped took hold, memories of the pain and torture, of spending long periods of time in the cold darkness, the only noises coming from the cylons as they tormented an equally trapped Lee.

Kara felt the hand enclose itself around her arm.

Lee had heard Kara's breaths getting louder and louder as the crew members walked past the hatch. All he had meant to do was take her by the arm and guide her out of the hatch. The sudden scream shocked him to his soul.

"Kara, what's wrong?" he asked panicked, but Kara thrashed around, pulling away from him.

"Get away from me!" she yelled out.

Lee had to act quickly before the yells attracted attention. He pushed open the hatch and pulled her out of the storage room. She seemed to calm down slightly once they were out, but her face was covered in sweat and she looked pale. Lee risked grabbing her arm again and dragged Kara round the corner and back to her quarters. Luckily no-one was around to see them.

As soon as they entered Lee slammed the hatch and then turned to Kara, "are you okay?"

"I don't..." Kara began but then her stomach lurched and she ran to the head. Lee grimaced as he heard the sound of her retching.

"What happened?" asked Megan coming in from the adjoining room. "Did you get caught? What's wrong?"

"Everything's fine," said Lee and then walked to the small bathroom. Kara was sitting on the floor with her back resting up against the wall, her head in her hands. "Are you okay?"

"I don't know what happened," she said ashamedly. "I was fine, and then we were in that storage room and everything closed in on me, it was like I was back there in that cage."

Lee didn't need her to explain anything more, he knew exactly what she meant. It was a sensation that he had experienced on an innumerable number of occasions, and in the memories that haunted his dreams. Lee sat down next to her and when she didn't flinch away, put his arm around her shoulders. Kara leaned her head on his shoulder.

"I thought I was over it. I hardly ever get the nightmares anymore."

"I don't think you ever get over it. I still get the nightmares, on and off."

"Really?" asked Kara, slightly relieved that she was not the only one to feel so weak at times.

"I was a frakking mess when they first found me. I couldn't sleep without the nightmares waking me up. I even became addicted to sleeping tablets for a while."

"They frakked us up good, huh? Even my therapist turned out to be a toaster and tried to kill me."

"Oh, that was..."

"Frakking typical? Yeah I know. It didn't help that I was the size of a raptor in full on labour at the time."

Lee smiled, not at the thought of Kara being in trouble, but of her being heavily pregnant. He'd accepted that they had children, but had not really considered that she must have been pregnant. Lee imagined what she must have looked like, how he would have stroked his hand across her bulging belly and held her hand as she brought them into the World.

He leant down and pressed a kiss to the top her head.

They continued to sit there in silence, with Kara's head on Lee's shoulder, two wounded soldiers.

* * *

The following day dragged past just as much as the day before. In the morning Kara had led the daily briefing in the Ready Room and allotted Showboat to the nightshift. As planned, Showboat made biting remarks about her assignment from the back of the room causing the pilots, except Lee, to laugh.

Now it was 0100 hours again and Kara sat waiting for the phone call she knew was going to come. She was already dressed in her flightsuit in preparation and was sitting at the table with her feet up alone, as it was not safe to have Lee in her quarters again. Her hand was still throbbing, but for obvious reasons she couldn't get it checked out in lifestation. She had cleaned it up as best she could and spent the day hiding the injury, either placing her hand in her pocket or wearing her flight gloves.

At last the sound of the phone ringing echoed through the room. Kara leapt to the feet and walked over to the receiver. She paused for a moment and then picked it up, then used the sleepiest voice she could muster. "Thrace."

As expected, Kara's presence was requested on the deck due to a viper that was in trouble. Before she left, Kara put through a quick call to Megan and then ran off down the corridor.

"What the frak is going on?" she demanded as she jumped up the ladder of her viper.

"Showboat called in some trouble with her viper, she has no manoeuvre control, she's a sitting duck," said a deckhand.

"Right," said Kara sounding annoyed. "Call through to the CIC, put them on alert that we're going to have an emergency landing on our hands, tell them to deploy all raptors currently on CAP over to the dead viper. I want all eyes on our pilot do you understand?"

"Yes, sir."

"And wake up Major Adama; tell him to report to the CIC, I may need his help guiding Showboat in."

Everyone followed Kara's orders without question, trusting their commanding officer. Lee was already awake when the phone in his quarters rang and didn't waste any time leaping out of bed before making his way to the CIC. As it was night time there was only a limited staff working and no Admiral Cain. Lee ensured that everyone's attention was focused on making sure the emergency fire crews were in place or communicating with the many ships that were now out by the damaged viper, putting himself in sole charge of the dradis monitor. He watched the blip belonging to the Tylium ship gradually get closer to the Galactica until they were merged together, but no-one else noticed.

It didn't take long for Kara to reach Showboat, "you okay there Captain?"

"I don't know what the frak happened!" she cried out. "One moment the controls were fine and then I had nothing. I can't frakking turn!"

"Okay, calm down, I'll get you home." Kara drew up alongside the dormant viper and turned her head to Showboat, laughing silently when she winked at her. "Okay, it looks as if your manoeuvring controls are fried, so you're going to have to use your thrusters."

"Okay Starbuck."

"We'll take it a step at a time, okay?" _And slow enough to ensure the Galactica has enough time to offload the refugees._

"You just get me home, Sir."

The next hour was taken up with Kara slowly guiding Showboat back to the deck. Everyone who was awake was focused on this task and no-one noticed the large ship that docked with Galactica's backup airlock. Adama and Helo were going to be the ones to guide the refugees into the small storage area, which was hidden in the bowels of the ship. Over the next few days they would then be taken in small groups by raptor down to the surface of New Caprica, so they could make a life for themselves. Roslin was already there, awaiting the new additions to the fleet.

The plan went completely smoothly. Showboat landed safely, but pushing her viper into the deck hard enough to ensure it looked dramatic. The fire crews came running out but they were not needed. Everyone cheered in the CIC as they heard Kara's voice confirming her safe return. Lee smiled as he looked up at the dradis, at the now emptier Tylium ship that was flying away.

It seemed that they had gotten away with their first victory against the Pegasus.

**AN: Thank you for all the wonderful reviews they always make me smile. Apologies if I don't respond to any until next weekend as I am going on holiday and I'm not sure if I'll have internet access.**


	31. A Small Measure of Justice

Chapter 30

The following morning at 1000 hours Kara and Lee were summoned to Admiral Cain's quarters. It was a call they were expecting and they casually arrived together and stood at attention to await their fate.

"At ease," said Cain. They both relaxed their stances, but could feel the tension in their shoulders. They were about to find out if they had really gotten away with their actions. The charges that could be laid against them were immense; sabotage, conspiracy, reckless endangerment, disobeying a direct order. If they were caught, they would surely be killed.

Kara found her stomach churning and was very aware of the gun she currently carried in its holster. If Cain was going to order their execution, then she was damn well going to take the Admiral with her. One shot between the eyes was all it would take.

"I understand there was an incident with a viper last night?"

"Yes, Sir," said Kara, tensing again. "Showboat, Sir, her manoeuvre controls fried."

"Why was I not awoken?" demanded Cain, her hands on her hips.

"The deck called me to go out there. I had the situation under control so continued."

"Very well," said Cain, a little unconvincingly, "is this a common problem Major?"

"Not that I'm aware of Sir," said Kara, she was playing with her hands behind her back, suppressing a wince when she knocked the nasty cut across her palm. "I've had it happen to me before, when I was on the Triton. I managed to get back to the deck with thrusters. The Chief of the deck said the wiring had been damaged by metal fatigue, it's rare but it happens."

"The vipers are getting old. I'm considering a programme to design new vipers, as most of the fleet is currently standing idle on New Caprica we should have plenty of materials."

"I think that's a good idea, Sir."

A knock on the hatch interrupted them and they recognised the Chief of the deck, Laird, enter with Garner next to him, they were both engineers. Lee bit the inside of his cheek and tried his best to keep breathing normally.

"What did you find Chief?" asked Cain to the nervous looking mechanic.

"As I suspected Sir, the wires controlling the yaw and pitch of the ship were worn."

"There's still one thing that puzzles me Chief," began Cain, making Lee and Kara feel as if the walls were closing in on them. Kara found the tips of her fingers touching the side of her gun. "Your reports state that you personally checked all of the wiring in every viper only last week."

_Frak_

"Are you suggesting it was something else that caused Showboats' viper to malfunction?" asked Lee, desperately trying to feign surprise.

"Actually," said Laird. "During my monthly inspection I only inspected the outer wiring as they are the most likely to fray. The manoeuvring controls are deeper inside so I could have missed the damage."

"Then I suggest you should step up your inspections starting now, dismissed."

Lee noted that Laird forgot to address the Admiral, but Garner stood taut and gave a sharp salute before turning towards him and Kara. He seemed to give them a knowing glare before walking out of the hatch.

After they left, Cain spoke again, "I want your full reports on what happened on my desk in three hours."

"Yes, Sir," they both said before saluting and walking towards the hatch, thankful that they were escaping.

"What happened to your hand, Major?" asked Cain suddenly, stopping them in their tracks. Kara felt her heart beating faster as she turned back to the Admiral.

"Sorry?"

"You're hand; it looks like you injured it. How?"

"Showboat had a hard landing last night, as a precaution we popped the hatch and pulled her out, my hand got in the way."

"You should get it seen to."

"It looks worse than it is."

Kara then turned abruptly and carried on walking out of the hatch. It was two corridors later when they both felt as if they could breathe again. They quickly walked to the Ready room, which was empty since the morning meeting.

"I thought we were frakked," said Lee, flopping down into one of the chairs.

"I think we still might be," replied Kara as she paced slowly around the room, her hands on her hips. "She's suspicious, but has no evidence to back it up. We need to be careful, one false move and she'll have us."

"Then I should get going, my hardnosed CAG has me on a double CAP starting at 1200 hours."

Lee rose from his chair and walked out leaving Kara alone, they both knew that they were going to be walking a very fine line, one false step and they would both fall off.

* * *

At 1800 hours, Kara was standing in the hangar deck and preparing for her late three hour CAP. Lee was due to finish any moment and was no doubt heading for home. She was about to finish her checklist when Laird walked over.

"Are you ready, Sir?" he asked.

"Just about Chief. How are your inspections going?"

"Fine, Sir, but I know all of them are sound," he seemed to have lowered his voice so only they could hear. "Funny that Showboat's viper was working perfectly last week."

Kara looked up at the Chief, knowing that he knew, "why did you lie?"

"I have no desire to see more bloodshed on this ship, and let's just say that lying to Cain has given me a little bit of justice."

"Right, and what makes you think I was involved?"

Laird looked down at Kara's clipboard, which she was holding in her left hand. "You left a nice bloody handprint underneath the belly of the viper, but don't worry, I cleaned it off."

Kara could feel herself blushing slightly, in her haste she had completely forgotten to check for bloodstains. "Right, thank you."

"Don't thank me, Sir. Its obvious Showboat was involved in your little scheme, whatever you were trying to do. But just so you know, if you ever endanger another member of this crew like this again, I will not hesitate in going to Cain."

He then walked away leaving Kara in stunned silence.

* * *

The following day, Lee was not shocked to find that he was summoned to one of the conference rooms. It did shock him however, when he saw his father and Helo sitting inside. Lee had not even been back with the fleet for a full week, but he had only seen his father on the first day of his return. Cain had obviously been keeping him away. The question was how he had managed to get on board the Pegasus finally?

They were sat at a table at the front of the room, looking far too formal for Lee's liking. A chair situated ominously opposite them.

"Is something wrong, Sir?" asked Lee, figuring that if this was about the sabotage then Kara would be there too. Since their meeting with Cain the morning before, they both felt as if they were being watched, which was compounded by the marine that seemed to have taken residence outside Kara's quarters.

Cain was the one who spoke out first, "Commander Adama was reluctant to call these proceedings, but after reading his logs it seems only fair to reprimand you too."

"What do you mean?" asked Lee confused.

"What she means," spoke out Adama, sounding displeased, "is that Major Thrace and Chief Tyrol have already faced a Court Martial hearing, and now you need to face yours."

"Wh...what?" he was really confused now, what the frak had he done, apart from the obvious act of sabotage? He soon found out as Cain began going through the normal procedure. Unlike Kara, Lee had never faced a Court Martial before and hung on every word.

Finally Cain got to the charges. Lee felt his face burn as she read them out, ashamed to be standing in front of his father like this. "Charge one is that you wilfully allowed the unscheduled launch of Raptor 450 contrary to rule 865.7 of the Colonial Fleet Manual, which states that all launches from any vessel must be cleared and authorised through the requisite CIC prior to the said launch. The unscheduled launch of Raptor 450, containing yourself and the then _Lieutenant_ Kara Thrace, resulted in the subsequent loss of the raptor and disappearance of said occupants." Adama shifted in his chair looking uncomfortable as Cain continued. "The second charge is that you fraternised with a subordinate officer, contrary to Rule 10 of the Colonial Fleet Manual, in that during an unspecified time you wilfully partook in relations with the then Lieutenant Kara Thrace, who was under your direct command as the Galactica's CAG."

Lee felt his face burning more and he would have done anything at that moment to flee the room.

"And finally, but I saved the best charge for last," said Cain with a vindictive sneer. "Is that you have acted in a behaviour unbecoming of an officer, contrary to Rule 3 of the Colonial Fleet Manual. In that during an unspecified time you wilfully partook in relations with another officer, namely the infamous Lieutenant Kara Thrace and that said relations resulted in her pregnancy and subsequent removal from flight duty. How do you plead Major?"

Lee had little to defend himself with. He had known damn well that he had broken the rules when he went out in that raptor, and he certainly couldn't deny fraternising with Kara. Lee tried to look his father in the eyes but found that he couldn't when he said, "guilty, Sir."

Adama pushed himself to standing suddenly and began pacing around the room. Cain eyed him before turning back to Lee, "very well. I understand that Thrace and Chief Tyrol were each given 5 full days in the brig. I feel that will be sufficient as you're needed on deck to design my new vipers. You will spend a further 10 nights in the brig after your shift. Do you have anything to add?"

"No, Sir," said Lee, standing to attention. He hated the brig and he would now be spending the next 15 nights sleeping in there. _Great._

The marines led him straight there, past the blonde cylon who was still lying on the floor. Baltar was also sat in the cell opposite her and seemed to be trying to co-operate. Lee's cell was the next one along and opposite the cylon's, but thankfully he couldn't fully hear what Baltar was saying to the poor woman.

After spending hours just staring at the wall, Lee glanced up to see his father approaching. A marine opened up the door to his cell and Adama stepped in, but he did not look very happy to see his son in the brig.

"Dad," said Lee and stood up from his bunk.

Adama walked up and embraced his son tenderly, but then pulled away, his face hardening, the look Lee remembered from his childhood when he was about to be told off. "What were you _thinking_?"

"What?" asked Lee, though he guessed what his father was referring to.

"I thought I brought you up better than _this_."

"Actually, dad, it was mum who mainly brought me up," retorted Lee, his old anger springing up.

Adama seemed unfazed, "she was engaged to your brother!"

Lee couldn't respond to that, had no defence to what he'd done, for letting his feelings for Kara take over. He sat back down on his rack and cupped his head in his hands.

"How long?" continued Adama.

"Sorry?"

"How long have you two been in a relationship? Did you wait or was Zak still alive?"

"Of course not dad, I wouldn't do that," Lee replied, not counting the drunken encounter on the table back when they had first met or the second embrace that came_ after_ Zak had died.

"But you had feelings for her when he was alive," it wasn't a question but a statement of fact. Lee looked up at him. "Your mother told me that she suspected something, but I let it slide, thinking she must be mistaken. Even when you came on board the Galactica, I trusted that you would stay professional and that the rumours and bets going around the ship was just the normal pilot banter."

"Why didn't you mention any of this before?" asked Lee, completely in shock.

"Because I trusted you!" the words shook around the cell and Lee could see the marines looking in, no doubt enjoying the show. "Not only were you stupid enough to fraternise with another officer, but you obviously seemed to have difficulty keeping your pants zipped."

"_Dad_..." said Lee, feeling himself blush again.

"Then you got her _pregnant_!"

"And you really think you're in the position to lecture me on that!"

Adama stepped back, knowing that his son was right, pain growing on his face.

"Dad, I'm..."

"I never expected for you to make the same mistakes."

"It wasn't a mistake," said Lee, suddenly calmer. "Look what we got." Adama smiled, he had never regretted having a family. "I know, and I've only known them for a few days." Lee continued, looking up at the doting grandfather, envious that he got to see them when they had just been born.

Adama seemed to sense the sadness in his son's eyes, "They're too young to remember you weren't there at the beginning and I know you're going to be a better father then I ever was." The tears pooled in Lee's eyes. "I have to get back to the Galactica."

Lee nodded, "does Kara know I'm down here?"

Adama laughed briefly, "yes, but I think I'll leave it to you to guess her reaction. She wanted me to give you this," he then reached into his pocket and took out a folded piece of paper, which Lee took. Adama gave him a hug before walking away and leaving him to his confinement.

Lee lay down on his rack and took a look at the piece of paper, almost afraid of its contents. He frowned in puzzlement when he folded it open one way and saw that there was paint smeared on the back. He smiled widely when he opened it up fully revealing the contents. Across the page in various bright colours were spread little hand prints. Lee stroked the page tenderly and then held it to his chest like a protective blanket, wondering at the mess two babies and Kara, mixed with paint must have created.

* * *

Karl tapped lightly on the hatch before entering Kara's quarters, smiling at the laughter coming from within, the most prominent of which belonged to a blonde pilot he knew very well.

"Kara?" he called out.

"In here, Helo."

He walked over to the small bathroom. Kara was standing over the sink bathing two content looking babies who thought it was hilarious that they could make the water splash. Kara had obviously thought ahead and was dressed down in only her military issue briefs and a single tank, her now shoulder length hair pinned up in an untidy ponytail. She was grinning widely down at her happily bathing children.

"Is that paint in your hair?"

Kara laughed and then leant down to give Lena a kiss on top of her now clean head, "we've been making pictures haven't we?" Joseph and Lena then both slapped their hands against the water in agreement. "You arrived just in time, this is the difficult part," she added and then quickly threw a towel at Karl. She then scooped up the babies in her arms and handed Joseph over into the blanket. Karl wrapped him up whilst Kara grabbed another towel for Lena.

"Care to tell me why a marine seems to have taken residence opposite your quarters?"

"Subtle isn't he," said Kara unconcerned. She then looked up at Karl and winked before pulling her trademark Starbuck grin.

"Be careful Kara."

"Always. So why have you taken the time to come here, isn't there enough to keep you busy on the bucket?"

"Yes, especially in the last few days," replied Karl giving Kara a knowing gaze.

"How's it going over there?"

"Good," he replied with a double meaning. "Kat's driving me crazy as normal. I do have some news though."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, I asked Sharon to marry me."

Kara didn't know what to say, she was torn between wanting to hit or hug him. She couldn't see how he could even contemplate marrying a cylon, but then she knew how much he loved her and what they had shared. Flashes from some of her dreams came back to her, which she tried to push away.

"I didn't expect you to jump for joy, but could you at least be a little happy for me?" He bounced Joseph and then handed him over to Kara who was still cradling Lena. She then got them changed and set them down to play with their toys.

"I'm happy for you Helo, really, it's great," she said finally, trying to sound convincing.

"Thanks, we'll have to wait for a while, maybe until Cain decides to take the Pegasus out of here. What I wanted to ask is if you could be there with me?"

"As in your "best man?" Of course I will, if Sharon's okay with it, I mean we did ..."

"That was a long time ago Kara, besides she doesn't know."

"Starting out married life with secrets, good job."

"I think Sharon owes me at least one secret," said Karl referring to the deceitful start to their relationship. "She keeps sending out requests for you to go and see her, have you been ignoring them?"

"No, look, I just don't know what to say to her okay?"

"How about hello?"

"Frak Helo," she said, shoving her legs forcefully into her slacks. "How can I look her in the frakking eyes? A couple of months after she loses her baby I give birth to frakking two of them."

"Is that the reason you're avoiding her?" asked Karl incredulously. Kara went quiet and looked at him intently. He hadn't seen her look like that since before she had had the babies, when a nightmare had racked her body so hard it had given her a nose bleed. There had been a sadness in her eyes that was directed at him. "What is it Kara, really?"

"It's nothing," she replied leaning down to pass a toy to Joseph.

"Then why do you keep looking at me like I'm about to die or something?"

"Just drop it Helo, please." She really didn't want to bring up this subject. Most of her nightmares consisted of the cylons and the baseship, of the horrors that she and Lee were put through. But sometimes she dreamt of something else, sometimes she dreamt of a large building from the original Twelve Colonies. It was bright from the sunlight shining through the windows and cavernous. She would run through the corridors as if she was looking for something, but all she could hear was the sound of babies crying. She would scream out for her children, desperate to find them, but all she would see was another child. A child that looked like Sharon. Kara had no idea what the dream meant but it shook her through to her soul.

"I'll go and see her, I promise, and I really am happy for you both."

Karl stepped back, trying to work out if she was sincere or not. "I had better get back to the Galactica, the old man should be back from the brig soon."

"Right."

"How are you two doing?" asked Karl, eager to know how Lee was dealing with being a father.

"We haven't hit or killed each other yet, so I'd say it's going well," she replied only half serious.

"How is he with the kids?"

Kara smiled, "he's great with them. They miss him already, which they're not shy of letting me know about."

"And what about the two of you?"

Kara laughed, "Helo, we could never work that one out_ before_ we were taken by the cylons and had twins."

"Well if you need me, you know where I am, and if Lee gives you any trouble I already owe him a right hook."

"I think I can fight my own battles. We'll be fine, we just need some time."

"Do you love him?"

"What?" asked Kara, shocked at Karl's forwardness.

"It's a simple question Kara, do you love him or not? You told me about what you said on the baseship."

_I love you, _she could never forget that moment. "It's complicated okay? Trust me, loving him is the easy part."

Karl started towards the hatch, but turned back as he reached it. "You are allowed to be happy Kara, remember that, look into the eyes of your children and remember that." He then exited the quarters before Kara could respond.

She sat there listening to sounds of her children playing happily, Karl's words running through her head. Kara had allowed herself to be happy once and in love, but she had gotten him killed. She didn't deserve to be happy again. Kara looked down at the floor just as Lena grabbed a toy and whacked it over her brother's head, who immediately started wailing.

"Hey," she cooed and lowered herself to the floor. She lifted Joseph into her lap and kissed him on the head against his little tuft of soft brown hair. Lena seemed left out, not understanding that she had hurt her brother, and also started to cry.

"You too, huh?"

Kara then scooped up her daughter and gave both of them a big hug. After a few moments they stopped crying and looked up at their mother with watery eyes. The meaning behind Karl's words suddenly hit her, realisation at how much her children loved and needed her without question. Kara had never wanted to be a parent, it was the furthest thing from her mind, but now she couldn't imagine her life without them. They made her happy.

Perhaps her and Lee really could have the same?

* * *

It was bad enough that he had been confined to the brig with three charges attached to his squeaky clean record, but having to look at Baltar in the opposite cell was taking the biscuit. The President had been spending every day talking to the toaster, who was now sitting up and talking back. To top it off, he ached all over from the hard bed and he was desperate to go for a long run.

Lee paced around the cell having just finished another round of push-ups. It was nearing the end of his fifth day in the brig now, one more sleep and then at least he could resume basic duties. Two days ago Kara had come to visit when he was in the middle of a work-out. Lee kept playing over and over in his head the image of her smile as he looked up to find her leaning against the clear partition.

"_This looks familiar," she said._

_Lee stood up slowly from the floor and walked over to her, "shouldn't that be my line?"_

"_I don't know, you seem almost as fond of the brig as I do these days, how many charges are on your record now?"_

"_Three."_

"_Well that's one more than me Adama, you're a real rebel."_

_Lee laughed, "I learn from the best."_

_Kara smiled with a sense of pride, "and now I have two children to influence."_

It shocked Lee how much he missed Lena and Joseph already, he had only known them about a week but they were already a part of him. He looked over fondly at the picture containing their little hand prints. As much as he wished for Kara to bring them to the brig for a visit, he would not subject them to this place. Kara had also brought down a small gift, her backlog of paperwork, which she had neglected to do since being made CAG.

He threw himself down into his rack, wincing at its lack of give on his back, and then closed his eyes. The lights were still blaring down at him so he rested his arm over his face in order to feign night-time. He could faintly hear Baltar droning on across the corridor, but the noise soon drowned out as sleep finally took hold.

The sound of gunfire awoke him with a start.

Lee rolled immediately off the bed and ducked down defensively. He had no idea where the gunfire had come from, but it was definitely not in his dreams. He crouched down and ran over to the cell partition.

A marine lay dead in the corridor and the door to the toaster's cell was wide open.

Lee was about to shout out for help when a blonde head suddenly appeared from the side, but it wasn't the blonde he longed to see. The sad and desperate pale eyes looked directly into his, making him jump backwards. Lee could see the deep seeded pain emanating through the cylons' face, bringing back images of Kara when she was hung up in that cage, her body shattered from the torture. The cylon stared intently at him, the gun held strongly at her side.

Then she walked away as quickly as she had appeared.

Lee immediately went back up to the partition and looked out. Baltar was slumped in his cell, but there didn't seem to be any blood from a bullet wound. The same could not be said for the second marine that was lying next to him, obviously dead from a bullet wound to the head. Lee did all he could from his confinement, he hollered for help as loud as he could.

He seemed to be shouting out forever when finally he saw Baltar stirring.

"Baltar! Baltar, wake the frak up!"

The President seemed confused and disorientated; he looked around the cell and then focused on nothingness, "what do you mean...I don't believe you."

Lee rolled his eyes, the doctor was choosing a fine time for being his usual crazy self, "Baltar!"

Finally he looked up, "what's going on?"

"Get me out of here now! I need to stop the cylon!"

After a few moments Baltar finally stood up, he looked towards nothing and then pressed the controls to Lee's cell, which opened immediately. Lee did not waste time on pleasantries and sprinted as fast as he could out of the brig, grabbing the downed marines' gun as he went. He knew exactly where the cylon was going, who she would seek out for vengeance. He shouted out to the first marine he saw to get all security members to the Admiral's quarters asap.

Hopefully they wouldn't be too late.

* * *

Kara thanked the Gods that Lee had done all of her paperwork. It had been piling up all week until Cain had stopped her in the CIC, demanding to know why Fisk had not received a single report. All week the marine had been following her movements, the only reprieve being when she was out on CAP. Kara had taken to teasing him every moment she could, just for a bit of entertainment.

When she entered the CIC, it was 2200 hours but the room was full. Cain looked tired but she stood resolutely at her post, unwavering. She looked up at Kara as she walked up and saluted with the paperwork slung under her arm.

"Major," acknowledged Cain. "I thought you finished your shift at 1800 hours," she added referring to Kara being dressed in her duty blues.

"I did, Sir, but I was finishing the last of these," replied Kara and held up the outstanding paperwork.

"Good idea to utilise Major Adama, perhaps I should throw him in the brig more often."

"Well, as I am the CAG and also in charge of training new pilots here and on the Galactica it would be more efficient to have Major Adama help me out with the paperwork."

Cain looked at her sternly for a few moments, "very well, as Apollo will be spending the next ten nights sleeping in the brig he can do your paperwork, after that I'm sure we can come to some arrangement."

Kara nodded her approval, shocked at Cain's acquiescence.

"Follow me, Major," the Admiral added and then turned away and walked out of the CIC. Kara obediently followed and jogged to catch up to her side. She had to admire the respect from the Pegasus crew towards their leader. As she passed them in the corridors each and every person stopped and saluted sharply. As tyrannical as Cain appeared to be, she had still led her crew through the initial cylon attacks. They were alive because of her dogged determination.

"Do you drink Major?" added Cain as she turned a corner.

"Not anymore."

Cain looked at her as if Kara had said something unheard of, and then nodded, "because of your children?"

"Yes, Sir."

"And before that?"

"Generally only to excess, sir."

Cain laughed briefly, which was a rare sound, "I guess I will be doing the drinking then."

Kara didn't know what to say, she was not used to seeing this side of Cain. The marine that usually followed her every move had fallen back slightly until Cain turned and dismissed him.

"Is your childminder okay to look after your children for another few hours?" Cain asked at last.

"She should be."

"Good, I have some things I want to discuss with you."

"May I ask about what, Sir?" said Kara as politely as possible. They were heading towards the Admirals' quarters, which notoriously lacked any chairs.

"The future of this Fleet. I have no desire to sit orbiting this planet for the rest of my life. The cylons are still out there and we need to hunt them down, what do you say to that Major?"

"I'd say that's the best plan I've heard in a long time, Sir," replied Kara, and about a year ago she would have meant it, when her anger towards the cylons was still raw. But she had grown up a lot since then, her old knack of self-destruction and her penchant for pulling insane stunts had quelled when she became a mother. All that mattered now was not revenge but securing a future.

They reached Cain's quarters and entered swiftly. The Admiral seemed to relax immediately, stretching out the stiffness in her neck. Kara turned back to close the hatch.

She barely had time to register the gun before everything turned to black.

* * *

Lee was just rounding the corner when he heard the gunshots.

The marines were close behind him as he swung open the hatch swiftly and ducked down into a defensive position, his gun raised. The cylon was still standing over her prey, but spun around quickly raising the gun towards the hatch.

Lee fired four rounds straight into her chest, dropping her to the floor.

The marines swarmed in and ran over to the prone form of Cain, who had a bullet hole between her eyes, the blood beginning to spill out over the floor. But she was not the only officer down. He saw her foot first towards the side, then his eyes panned up, recognising immediately the person sprawled on the floor.

"Kara!" he shouted and ran straight over to where she lay. His turned her over carefully and felt for a pulse, relief at feeling the steady rhythm beneath his fingers. A nasty cut and bruising was forming on her temple. "Get the medics in here, now!"

Lee lifted up Kara's head to rest in his lap, stroking back her hair gently. He looked over at the cylon, finding her eyes focused over at them, a small smile played on her lips and then she faded out, peace finding her at last.

* * *

Kara felt her head pounding as she became aware of her surroundings, the noises of a busy room, with many voices speaking at once around her. _I'm in the frakking life-station again. _Memories of the cylon flashed before her eyes, she had no time to react, no time to stop her as the gun stuck her across the head, knocking her to the ground unconscious.

"Kara?"

It was Lee's voice coming from next to her, followed by the sounds of squealing babies. _Our children._

"Hang on, I think she's waking up," said Lee again. "Kara?"

Kara fluttered her eyes open and saw the bright lights of the lifestation, which seemed even brighter than on the Galactica.

"Welcome back sleepyhead," she turned her head slowly and saw Lee looking down at her, holding their children in his arms. They looked ecstatic to see that their mother was awake. Adama was standing next to them and smiling.

Kara reached out to her babies, touching their little feet as Lee sat them down next to her on the bed, the safety rail and his body protecting them.

"Hey," she said croakily. "You miss me?"

"They've been getting a little impatient," said Lee.

Kara looked up suddenly at Lee, "Cain?"

Lee shook his head, and Kara had to admit that she felt a small pang of sorrow at the Admiral's death, "she was too quick, I couldn't..."

"That doesn't matter now," said Adama stepping in. "You need to rest, that was some hit you took."

Kara winced as her head throbbed, but she pushed it away focusing instead on her babies that were reaching out for their mother, full of unconditional love.


	32. A Glimpse of the Future Part Five

Chapter 31

**AN: I am soooo sorry for the delay in updating. I wrote the first 1000 words really quickly then hit a complete brain block, coupled with difficulties at work (facing unemployment is not fun.) I hope it doesn't disappoint **

**[Also, I had a lovely review of my last chapter from a new fanfic member, but their account was not allowing messages back, so I just wanted to say thank you.]**

Caroline had never witnessed a complete lockdown of the base before, but it had happened moments after Blondie told them about the cylons.

"_They wiped us out. All twelve planets, billions of lives destroyed in less than a day..._

_...They infiltrated our entire defence mainframe and launched all of our weapons against us. Whenever we tried to fight back they just switched off our Battlestars like they were turning out a light, we were defenceless..._

_...The cylons were following us, trying to wipe the rest of us out, but then they changed their plan. They want to make Earth their new home and they'll stop at nothing until they find you."_

Those words played on her mind over and over during the day and they haunted her dreams at night. Images of destruction, of worlds she had never seen being completely obliterated by mushrooms clouds.

The powers at the head of government had been listening in on every word Blondie and Blue Eyes had said. It was the woman who had revealed the most due to Ford's direct questions whereas Howell's questions towards Blue Eyes were focused upon their weapons capabilities. She had watched a play back of his interview and found the other reason for the lockdown. Their guests were not only more technologically advanced, but they also had some type of nuclear weaponry.

Since that day Caroline had not seen her home or anyone else who was at the base that day. They were all sleeping in the emergency accommodation wing in the outer circle of the base. Ford was called to numerous meetings and she wouldn't see him for days. His last disappearance was two days ago and, from what she had heard, sent to Westminster.

It had been ten days since that day, ten days of being isolated from her family. Their guests had also been confined to their quarters and the cabin fever was starting to get to them. Caroline felt guiltier than ever, moreover they had broken their promise to allow their guests some time together.

She watched on from her chair into the individual rooms. The translator computers had been set up so anything said by the guests could be understood. It was interesting to hear what some of them said to themselves.

Blondie was lying on her bed and looking at the picture of her children with a look of longing. Caroline couldn't imagine what it was like to be separated from your children for nearly two months. Brunette was asleep like normal and Mr Robot was flipping through the television channels watching nothing in particular. The cylon was busy doing sit-ups. Legs was lying on his bed and humming whilst Blue Eyes sat in a chair opposite, his head laid out on the table and buried in his arms. Suddenly he flew up, shouting something out to Legs, which was quickly translated.

"Skulls! I swear to the Gods, if you keep humming that frakking tune I'm going to work out how to detach this chair from the floor and smack you over the head with it!"

"It's the Colonial Fleet anthem," replied Legs as if that was enough of an answer.

"The first time was great, truly, wonderful. But you've been humming it for a whole frakking week now!"

Caroline sighed at the scene unravelling in front of her and signalled to one of her marines who promptly ran over. It wasn't the first time that Blue Eyes and Legs had kicked off at each other. A few days ago they had broken out into a full on fight, ending with both of them in the infirmary with an icepack. Blue Eyes still had the remnants of a black eye and Legs had a cut across the bridge of his nose. At the time, Ford had pointed out that two men confined to close quarters for long periods of time were bound to conflict; apparently men need their personal space.

"Get Blue Eyes out of there before they try and kill each other again," she said to the marine, who laughed then nodded his head. He then motioned to another marine and they both exited the room.

Predictably Legs started humming again and Blue Eyes launched to his feet, stopping as the marines opened the door and motioned for him to leave, which he did so gladly.

"Legs and Blue Eyes kicking off again?" asked one of the scientists, whose white lab coat swamped her small frame.

"Yeah, he needs to be moved somewhere else."

"Where should we move him to though, it'll be the same problem with Mr Robot, not that I wouldn't hate to see those two fighting mind you."

Caroline looked up and laughed at her colleague. "Well I think we're a bit stuck then, if the men are shoved together it'll end up in bloodshed, so the only other option would be to move Blondie in with Brunette."

"I think that would have too many people flocking here to watch."

"I agree, and I can imagine a fight between those two would be just as explosive."

"Well we've got to do something or we'll have to stick Blue Eyes down in the cells."

Caroline crossed her arms and thought deeply before an idea struck her, it would be risky and she could get into trouble, but it would certainly break the monotonous boredom. "Stick him in with Blondie."

"What? Are you serious?"

"Completely, those two might be married but they're also the superior officers. We could get some information and they're unlikely to start fighting."

"No, they'll probably start doing something else."

"Good for them, I think we owe them some private time." If she had to be honest, Caroline really wanted to annoy the powers that be, but they hadn't been interested in viewing their guests since the lockdown, preferring to debate everything behind closed doors. She doubted whether they would even notice. "Do it."

A couple of minutes later and the marines guided Blue Eyes down the corridor, but first they led him to Caroline. She noted that he didn't look happy and he glanced over towards the windows separating him from his people. He seemed taken aback when she motioned for him to take a look.

After looking in, lingering on Blondie's room, he spoke through the translation machine, "I thought you were going to keep us locked up like animals forever."

"Believe me, if I had a choice you wouldn't be. I brought you in here to show you that everyone is okay."

"Yeah, we're doing great being locked up and experimented on."

"You've got to understand, before you came, we'd never met someone from another planet, and now you tell us _we _ourselves came from somewhere else? Anyway, the power is out of my hands."

Blue Eyes still seemed unimpressed, and Caroline feared that the relations between them had been irreparably damaged. "I thought we had a deal, that you would let us have some time together."

"I know and I'm sorry, which is why I'm finding my own way to change things. You're not going back to the same room; you're joining your wife." Blue Eyes raised his eyebrows in obvious surprise when her words had been translated. "I expect you both to show the right amount of discretion."

He smiled before being led away by the marine. Blondie was still lying on her bed and looking at the picture of her children when the door to her room was opened and Blue Eyes stepped through.

"Seriously?" she said and launched herself off the bed and into his arms. Caroline watched on with a smile as the couple embraced.

"Meet your new roommate," he said softly into her hair.

Blondie pulled back and looked at him intently, "what the frak happened to your eye?"

"That would be the work of Skulls, we were sharing a room."

She stroked his eye gently and then placed her lips to his, "what's going on Lee? How the frak do we get out of here?"

"There's not much we can do except sit back and wait for them to decide if we're a threat."

"I'm bored of frakking waiting Lee," she replied strongly and turned away.

"Planning another escape bid Kara? 'Cause a heads up would be nice this time."

Blondie grinned widely and turned back towards her husband, her voice more playful this time, "are you going to step in and hit someone again?" Blue Eyes didn't respond, giving her a disapproving stare instead. "Oh go on, please."

Caroline smiled as Blue Eyes sternness dissolved and went to his wife, cupping her face gently and then kissing her firmly. She wished to have someone so close to her, suddenly feeling very lonely. They seemed very unconventional but obviously loved each very much. She was quickly drawn back to the room, which looked more sombre than the loving exchange she had witnessed moments before. Blue Eyes was hugging Blondie tightly.

"We'll see them soon," he said into her hair.

"I want to be with them now Lee, what if they forget us?"

"Never going to happen, it's what we always agreed if something like this happened; Megan will look after them for now, show them our picture every day."

Blondie pulled away again, the irritation obvious in her face, "it took us a frakking year to get here, and for what? Earth's a big frakking disappointment Lee, face it." She turned towards the glass, seeming to glare directly at Caroline. "You getting all this, writing it down in your frakking notes?" she said with spite.

Her words stung Caroline to the core; she had never wanted this to happen and feared the damage was irreparable.

* * *

Ford was exhausted when he was brought back from Westminster. He had been central to a meeting between the Prime Minister and the UN, most which contained discussions about the threat their guests could pose towards them. Ford was insistent that they had come to Earth in the search of help, and emphasised their whole civilisation had been destroyed.

When he entered the main observation area he found only a small number of staff in attendance, which was hardly unusual considering it was 2300 hours. He walked over to the room and peaked in, the lights were off in their rooms but he could just make out the shapes of people in their beds. He was shocked to see Legs alone and none of the other rooms seemed to contain a bed on the floor.

"Hey, where's Blue Eyes?" he shouted out to one of the scientists on duty.

"Doc moved him to Blondie's room."

At first Ford thought the scientist was joking and walked over to that room, turning up the lighting slightly. He saw immediately the form of two people sleeping in the bed, the blonde covered head stirring slightly against Blue Eyes' chest before awakening and squinting up at the upturned lighting. When their guests were asleep they turned off the translation machines, but Ford had learnt the word "frak," and guessed Blondie was annoyed about being woken up.

He turned the lights off again and went in search of Caroline.

He found her in the residential area watching television. He stormed over and lifted her by the arm, pulling her towards his temporary room despite her protests.

"What the hell?" she yelled as soon as he pulled her into the room.

"Are you trying to get yourself fucking disappeared?!"

"What are you talking about?" she asked, though she suspected what he was talking about.

"Putting Blue Eyes with his wife."

"His name's Lee."

"Cut the crap Carrie, what were you thinking?"

"That they needed a break. That this is going to turn into a disaster if we alienate them. That we broke our promise."

Ford stepped back, he had also felt guilty about that, but understood the reasons why.

"Look, Blue Eyes and Legs had another fight," added Caroline.

"So you should've stuck one of them in the basement."

"And break _another _promise? That would've made them really happy. Look, John, we have a real opportunity here to find out more about ourselves. Humans didn't originate from Earth, we come from out there, from the stars. I don't know about you, but I want to learn more about my origins."

"If they're even telling the truth."

"Oh come on! Did Blondie seem to be lying to you, why would they?"

Ford nodded, he had believed her too and so did the UN. "How are they getting on anyway?"

"Fine. They're just angry and frustrated and miss their kids, but they seem okay. They haven't _done _anything if that's what you're worried about."

"It was one of the things."

"Well they haven't, all they did was talk and spend the whole evening lying in each others' arms."

"Well tomorrow the powers that be want to hear more from them."

"Seriously?"

"Does it look like I'm joking?" replied Ford bluntly, obviously still not in good spirits. "So get to bed and get some sleep because Blondie and Blue Eyes are going up in front of an entire panel tomorrow."

* * *

The base went from being deathly quiet to a hive of activity the following morning. Caroline and Ford had watched as car after car entered through the security barriers and checks. Winter had fully set in and the snow was starting to come down and settle on the ground. Looking at such beauty she wondered at how long their guests had travelled through space, if they had any windows to look out at the stars.

The meeting was going to be held in the middle circle of buildings, in a big conference room. The officials had no interest in looking at the guests in their rooms, choosing to just sit and wait. Fortunately this meant they hadn't seen that Blondie and Blue Eyes had been put together.

When Caroline had arrived that morning they were still in each others' arms with Blondie nestled gently against Blue Eyes' side, an arm flopped over his chest, looking so peaceful. They were awoken by two marines who brought in food trays containing scrambled eggs, toast and two cups of tea. It was the first time they had been given such a breakfast and it seemed to go down well. Caroline thought it was only right to give them a hearty meal before throwing them to the wolves.

At 1000 hours the call came down to get them ready and bring them to the conference room. They had been talking quietly together at their small table when Caroline switched on the comm system and spoke through a microphone that was then translated. It was the first time she had used the system, inspecting to make Blondie and Blue Eyes jump, but they did'nt flinch. Instead they looked at each other with a knowing glance, as if they were expecting this call.

"Good morning," she said as sweetly as possible, which was pointless because the translation machine still translated in a masculine and monotone voice. "In five minutes you are both going to be taken before an official panel, I request that you both get dressed and ready to go."

"Frak off," muttered Blondie who was dressed only in her issued white slacks and cropped top.

Blue Eyes gave her the disapproving look, which Caroline had seen before and chucked over her jumper. "Try and put your best triad face on Kara," he said, but Caroline had no idea what he meant by that.

"You want me to sit there with a big grin on my face?"

"No, just don't sit there like you'd want nothing more to walk over and thump someone. Talking may be the only way to get out of here."

The marines arrived about five minutes later and guided them into the corridor, they didn't resist, didn't put up a fight even as they were cuffed with hand and leg chains.

"Is this necessary?" asked Blue Eyes.

"There are some important people at this meeting and they ordered the restraints," replied Caroline and then motioned towards the corridor. She was carrying a translator, which had been designed to be portable and she could sling it over her shoulder. She was expecting them to kick up a fuss, but they just simply turned and followed her direction, shuffling as best as their constraints would allow.

Fortunately it was not a long walk to the conference room, but it meant going out of one building, through a security gate and into the middle circle of buildings. They were not allowed to let their guests simply walk through so they were briefly taken outside and loaded into the back of a van before being driven through to the other building. Caroline noted how Blondie and Blue Eyes took in a deep breath in the brief moments they stepped outside into the cold air, remembering they had not breathed fresh air in about two months.

They seemed unperturbed as the guards guided them into the conference room, which was large with a high ceiling. Set out in arch formation was a long table with various people sitting behind, including Ford and Howell sitting towards one of the outer sides. There were microphones and headphones set up in front of each person. Opposite the arch of desks was placed some more desks containing microphones and headphones for two people. Blondie and Blue Eyes were guided to these seats. Four marines stood behind them armed and Caroline sat herself to the side with some other scientists.

The man sitting in the middle of the table seemed to be in charge, but Caroline didn't recognise him. He was dressed in a military uniform with many decorations. She recognised a few others around the room to be various MPs, the highest up being the Foreign Minister himself. They made their introductions short and then went into the questions, mainly focusing on the ground already covered in the solo interviews. They read out parts, asking if what they said was correct. Throughout the recap the pair stayed calm, their faces blank. Caroline had half expected Blondie to yawn as the hour dragged on, but she stayed focused, professional and answering yes and no at the appropriate places. None of their answers need much expansion.

Inevitably the questioning moved on and they projected an image of their crashed ship onto a screen. Again Blondie and Blue Eyes seemed unfazed by the development.

Howell began this line of questioning, "You both have claimed to be pilots and I understand you described this as being a military vessel is that correct?"

"Yes," replied Blue Eyes.

"Do you both fly this vessel?"

"We can, but we're assigned to fly vipers."

"Right," another image flashed up on the screen showing a partial outline of a ship, Caroline recognised it as being an enlargement from the picture containing the two children. "Which is this vessel?"

"Yes."

"And this is some sort of military fighter ship used by your Colonial Fleet?"

"Yes," repeated Blue Eyes again. "What you're seeing is an older model that had been decommissioned at the time of the cylon attack."

"But yet you had some on board?"

"The Galactica was being turned into a museum," added Blondie. "We had a large number on board as part of a display. The modern style vipers were susceptible to cylon infiltration and mostly all destroyed in the initial attack."

"And what weaponry do these ships use?"

Blondie shrugged, seeming to think it was an obvious question, "bullets."

"Is that it?"

"Yes, they're designed to be quick and manoeuvrable in order to take out other small targets."

The Foreign Minister spoke out, "and the other four, they are pilots as well?"

"Yes, but they fly the other ship, called a raptor."

"Right," he continued. "And what weaponry do they fire?"

Blue Eyes shifted slightly before saying, "they're mainly recognisance, transport, rescue and support ships they're generally not used for fighting."

"I understand the weapons chambers were empty when you crashed."

"That's because they'd been used, we were being attacked when we jumped away and found here, which is why we were damaged and crashed."

"What weapons can it carry?"

"It can be fitted with missiles and countermeasures."

"Does that include nuclear weapons? Because traces of radiation were found to be present."

Blue Eyes sighed, "yes, they can in theory, but we keep our few nuclear missiles on the Battlestars."

"Yes, I understand that from your interview with Mr Howell. May I ask how many nuclear weapons are on board your Battlestars?"

Blue Eyes turned to look at his wife and they both seemed uncertain, "I'm not sure of the exact number, less than ten I believe."

This seemed to cause murmurings to echo around the room.

"And these cylons? How many do they have?"

"Frak loads," blurted out Blondie. "In the initial attacks that's how the destroyed all the other Battlestars, switched them off and then destroyed them with a couple of nukes. They even fired some at the Galactica. I managed to destroy two before they hit, but the third damaged us badly."

Caroline felt the dread pooling in her stomach again and found herself silently praying that these cylons never found them. The rest of the room also seemed disturbed by the information, shifting about in their chairs.

They droned on continuously for another hour asking question after question about the calibre and engineering of the weaponry. At one point Blondie had sighed and said, "How the frak should I know? I just press the fire button, but I'll make a mental note to bring a deck hand with me the next time I crash land on a planet." Caroline agreed with her to a degree, the questioning was ridiculous.

During a pause a keen looking man wearing jeans and trainers, leaned towards the microphone tapping it gently before he spoke, obviously unaccustomed to speaking in front of a group of people. "Um hi," he said awkwardly.

Blondie waved briefly with a smirk on her face making Blue Eyes laugh.

"Um, I'm Dr. Swanson." Caroline raised her eyebrow in recognition. What Dr. Swanson lacked in people skills he made up for in brains, he was a well known genius in the field of astronomy and astrophysics and had obviously been invited along to the conference because he was a leading mind. "I just have a few questions," he continued. "You said that your home planet..."

"Planets," interrupted Blue Eyes.

"S...sorry, your home planets were destroyed and you've been on the run is that correct?"

"Yes."

"Well, forgive me, but your ship, as beautiful as it is, does not seem big enough to hold 50,000 people, where are the rest of you?"

"We settled on a planet over a year ago, it's hidden from the cylons in a nebula."

Swanson nodded, "really? I would love to get more details about the nebula some time, but I understand that you're only pilots as Miss Thrace so eloquently stated." Blondie coughed slightly to hide her smirk, obviously amused by this strange man. He was also the only person who had attempted to address their guests by their proper names. "I've listened to your interviews and I understand that you born on Picon and Caprica?"

"Yes," replied Blue Eyes.

"Can you tell me what the other planets are called?"

"Sure, we've got Virgon, Tauron, Libran, Gemenon, Aerilon, Aquaria, Leonis, Scorpia, Canceron and Sagittaron."

Caroline scrunched up her face, the names sounding familiar, names that were written all over the horoscopes in the papers every day. Everyone else seemed to have noticed too.

"Do they orbit the same star?" asked Swanson as he finished writing down various notes.

"No," replied Blue Eyes a little uncertainly, obviously sensing the tension in the room. "Four different stars."

"And the planets were all united?"

"They each held their own customs, but with only one President of the Colonies governing all twelve planets, which I'm guessing is not the same here."

"And what makes you say that?"

"I've been watching the television in my room; even though I couldn't understand the language it's clear there are many factions here, conflicts." Swanson nodded and leaned back in his chair knowing that it was time for the politicians to take back over, but Blue Eyes continued. "Look, we've told you everything we can so far and yet you still hold us here like prisoners, questioning our motives. We're just trying to survive, what's your motive? To seize the technology first, build the biggest weapons?"

Blondie looked up at her husband evidently surprised at his sudden outburst.

"Calm down please," said the Foreign Minister.

"No, why should we? We came here looking for hope and we get locked up and experimented on, watched 24 hours a day. If you'd just move on from thinking of us as a threat then we could learn from each other."

"And what could we learn?"

"We lost everything when our homes were destroyed, survived on the resources we had in stock. We need help starting again, basic supplies, medicines, everything. In return we would be willing to share what technology we have left, to help you build ships, FTL drives."

The room went silent again. Caroline saw Ford gazing over at her, eager to gauge her reaction to Blue Eyes' words.

Blondie leaned forward to the microphone before they had a chance to reply, "Look, you have two choices. One, you don't trust us and lock us up again. Our ship will not wait for us forever. If we don't contact her soon, she's under orders to leave here and you'll miss your only chance of an alliance and protection for when the cylons finally find you, and they will. Two, you trust us and we can help each other, find a way to destroy the cylons for good."

"Would you let us on your ship?" asked Swanson looking keen, the other members from the table seemingly shocked at the question.

Blue Eyes shrugged, "it's not my ship, but I can't see that being a problem."

"Right, well I think we've heard enough for today," interrupted the Foreign Minister sounding quite genuine. "Thank you both for sharing your knowledge and insights, believe me they will all be considered and I hope we can come to some sort of agreement."

The meeting had gone as well as could be expected, the questioners taking a nicer stance then Caroline had expected. Suddenly the Earth felt so small and insignificant to her and she longed to be out with the stars, to see their worlds and people. She knew their planets had been destroyed, but that did not quell her desire to see them.

But she feared the cylons. When the panel had asked about the weaponry, she had visions of nuclear war, of the cylons finding and enslaving them all, the fires consuming everything without discrimination or remorse. It was a terrifying future to imagine.

Blondie and Blue Eyes had not said much once returned to their room, choosing to lie on the bed together and cuddle. Later that night Caroline had turned a blind eye, choosing to look away, as they shifted under the covers of the bed. Blue Eyes had placed a soft kiss on her cheek, before placing his lips to hers, Blondie responding in kind. What started with a kiss soon developed; the passion and weeks of separation obviously taking over the last of their resolve. The last thing Caroline saw was a white sweatshirt being flung across the room and Blue Eyes shielding his wife from prying eyes, before she walked away.

The next morning when she returned and checked on the rooms she saw them still intertwined in the bed, the covers hiding their bodies, clothing strewn about the floor.

"Told you," whispered Ford into her ear, making the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end.

"Give them a break, they deserve some time together," she said turning and facing him, his eyes piercing into her soul.

"I agree and so do the men at the top," he replied smiling.

"What?"

"They want to talk, discuss a plan for communicating with their people."

Caroline couldn't believe what she was hearing, she hadn't thought the conference had gone that well, but they seemed to have finally listened.

"I think we should give them a little treat don't you?" he added.

"What did you have in mind?"

Ford had merely smiled and walked away, returning an hour later with a number of marines and a few boxes full of clothing. Another fifteen minutes and their guests were guided out of their rooms clad in winter clothing including large coats, boots and gloves. Caroline and Ford stood by as their guests saw each other for the first time in weeks. The cylon leaping into her husbands' arms and Blue Eyes went to each in turn, asking if they were okay.

The marines had formed a perimeter around the garden area that surrounded the inner building. Snow had fallen thick and fast overnight and now lay a foot deep. Their guests took in a deep breath as they were released into the gardens, obviously rejoicing in the fresh and cool air.

Everyone watched as their guests spread out, wandering around the grounds in their own individual ways. Blondie snuck up behind her husband with a large snowball in her hand, laughing hysterically and fleeing as it hit him over the head. He had jumped from the cold, twisting and giving chase, soon catching up with her and shoving a snowball down her neck causing her to squeal. The others soon joined in, creating a large snowball fight, their laughter echoing through the grounds.

_Perhaps everything would be alright after all. _


	33. Jealousy

Chapter 32

_Battlestar Galactica_

Her head was pounding as she opened eyes to the sound of an alarm blaring, squinting at lights that seemed brighter than the previous night.

"Aw frak," she moaned, still unable to fully open her eyes.

She needed to get up. Rolling over, she was shocked to find her body crashing to the floor. She looked up to see the reason for the fall, realising she had slept sprawled over a small sofa.

"Oh my gods, someone get me some aspirin stat," came another moan from across the room and Kara saw Karl laid out underneath a table.

They weren't the only people in the room. On the double bed, Duck and Kat were still sleeping top to tail. Kara dragged herself off the floor, stepping over the debris that covered every surface, consisting of various cups and empty bottles of ambrosia. Her stomach was turning. Deciding it would be best to haul ass to the adjoining bathroom, she just made it before bringing up the contents of her stomach. She half collapsed to the floor when she finished, leaning her elbows on the toilet bowl. It had been over a year since she had drunk alcohol.

_And I had to mark the occasion by drinking it in abundance, _she thought, groaning slightly at her aching head.

Another moan drew Kara's attention and she turned to see Hotdog passed out in the shower cubicle, she suppressed her laughter and then walked over. She switched on the water, making him jump a mile.

"What the frak?! Starbuck!"

She had never seen him move so fast, leaping out of the way of the spray. She ignored his cussing and walked back to the main room. Adama was going to kill her. The place was a state, reminding her of the first time Lee had looked after their twins. Her heart suddenly panged slightly as she thought of him, pushing it away quickly, she nudged Karl with her foot.

"Nice wedding hair Helo."

"Please get me some aspirin," he moaned, wincing against the bright light.

"Once you've had a shower, come on"

"What time is it?"

"0900 hours, only two hours left until _I do_."

"Frak, why didn't you wake me earlier?"

"It may have escaped your notice Helo, but I drank just as much as you last night." _As if I need reminding._

"Right. Are you going to try and find Lee...?"

"Shower," she interrupted. "Now."

Karl moaned, grabbing at the table to haul himself to his feet. He muttered as he finally entered the head and closed the hatch. Kara then quickly woke up Kat and Duck and ushered them out of the quarters ignoring their various protests.

But now she was alone with her headache and her frakking mind. No matter how much she tried, she could not get Lee Adama out of her head and it was frakking her off. As a rule she never let a man affect her so much, which is why she usually preferred one night stands. Then she had met Zak and through him Lee, and from then on she was completely screwed.

Last night was definitely one of the nights she wished she could rewind and start again.

Swinging open a locker she pulled out two dress uniforms complete with sashes, braiding and two sets of white gloves. Kara couldn't believe that Karl was getting married, and to a toaster to top it off, but at least he was happy. Her job was to get him to the priest on time and looking at least half awake. The latter task might prove the most difficult.

Finally he emerged from the shower thirty minutes later looking slightly better. "Right, I've had a shower, thrown up once; can I have my aspirin now?"

Kara smiled then held out her hand, "don't say I never give you anything. I'll be back in a bit; one and a half hours left." She grabbed a towel off the floor and closed herself in the head. The room was steamy and hot. She rubbed a fist over the mirror so she could vaguely see her reflection, grimacing at the dark lines under her eyes and pallid skin. It had been years since she'd been in the sun.

"Looking fantastic Kara," she muttered to herself then turned away before getting into the shower. As the water cascaded down her shoulders her thoughts were of Lee. The cubicles felt cramped here on the Galactica, much smaller than the family quarters on the Pegasus and regardless of how hard she stared at the wall, nothing would stop the images of him flooding to her mind.

She had frakked up completely.

* * *

_Battlestar Pegasus – The Previous Morning_

Lee fired round after round into his target. Taking out his frustration on a piece of paper was not really satisfying, but it was the best method he could find. The last few weeks had been exhausting with having to adjust to a new commander and being a father.

After Cain had been killed by the cylon, chaos had ensued throughout the ship. Kara had been rushed to the lifestation with a nasty head injury and Fisk had taken charge of the ship. He didn't command with the same level of authority and respect as his predecessor and the crew was angry. Some of the bitterness at losing their leader had been aimed towards Kara, with snide remarks coming from the back of the Ready Room about her reaction skills. She had ignored the jibes, knowing for a fact she could out-fly and out-shoot anyone in the room, though Lee suspected she was beating herself up about it, blaming herself for not stopping the cylon.

The rest of the crews' anger was directed at Baltar, confounded about how the cylon had escaped from her cell. More importantly, how she had escaped from her shackles. The crew was demanding answers but the President refused to give any, choosing to return back to New Caprica where he barely acted as a leader. Even his Vice President, Zarek, had spoken outwardly against his rule.

But the state of the fleet was not the only reason Lee felt frustrated. In the passing weeks he and Kara seemed to have gotten no-where, barely seeing each other except to exchange children. He should've expected it wouldn't be simple. He had hoped they could start again from where they had left off, but after everything they had been through together, he soon realised it was not possible and Kara seemed to have put up her normal shield, blocking him out.

He blasted off six rounds into the target in quick succession before slamming down his sidearm and removing his ear protectors.

"Being a bit aggressive aren't we?" asked a familiar voice, making him swing around sharply. Kara stood there wearing her own ear protectors, her arms folded in front of her chest.

"Hey," was all Lee could think of to reply. He had no idea why Kara was suddenly brushing him off and it was frustrating the frak out of him, so the least he said the better. "So what have I done to deserve the honour of a visit from the CAG?"

"Nothing. Fisk wants everyone to go through a guns training exercise."

"Right," replied Lee shortly and then made to walk away. "It's all yours."

"Sure you don't want to stay and watch how this is supposed to be done?" she said smiling broadly, a hint of the glimmer Lee knew and loved well. He held out his arm and gestured to the booth he had just vacated, watching as Kara swaggered over and removed her sidearm from its holster.

This was how it always seemed to go with them. They would be laughing and flirting with each other as if they were lovers, but then the next moment she would switch, close off again and he had no idea why.

Kara resented being ordered to retrain, especially as she was the best shot in or out of the cockpit. She had been a little shocked to see Lee already practicing and taken aback by his fierce concentration, watching from the other side of the room as he fired round after round, pausing briefly to change clips and then firing again.

Words could not describe the feelings she had felt when Lee had come home to her all those weeks ago and everything had been fine for a while, but then they had been closed in that dark cupboard after sabotaging Showboat's viper. That was when the dreams had come back, every night they raked through her body, causing her to wake up in a cold sweat. The look on Lee's face as he was brought outside her cell, watching as she was strung up by the shackles and seeing a part of him dying every day haunted her mind.

Kara picked up her gun, loaded the clip and fired in quick succession, imagining her target was one of their tormentors. It didn't matter which one, they were all equally as bad. The blonde had been the main torturer, but at least Kara had gotten her revenge by snapping its neck with a satisfying crack. Leoben had come to her when she was too weak to move, whispering in her ear about how much they needed to be together. After firing her last bullet she ejected the clip and slammed the gun down before removing her ear-protectors.

"And you say I was being aggressive," mocked Lee just behind her head, his breath making the hairs on her neck stand on end. If he had done that before they were taken, she wouldn't have hesitated to spin around and kiss him firmly, but now she couldn't and it was pissing her off.

The target reeled forward showing a number of holes in the middle of the target and a few more towards the outer circles.

"Not your normal prowess," observed Lee, knowing that she usually got every bullet in the central two circles. She was driving him crazy, all he wanted to do was circle his arms around her waist and kiss her cheek. "Perhaps you'd do better with your right hand?"

"That'd be far too easy," replied Kara and then turned, her gaze meeting his with their noses only inches apart. It would be so easy to let herself go, but she was afraid, afraid of being pushed away, of losing him. Afraid of what she felt. She grinned, "well that should keep Fisky off my back for a while," her usual Starbuck bravado returning.

"Kara..."

"I've got to go, my shift finishes at 1500 hours and then I need to get over to the Galactica."

"How come?"

"Helo's getting married tomorrow, so it's my duty as the best man to give him a good send off," she said, grinning again. "You coming?"

"Who's going to look after the kids?" A question Lee thought he would never live to ask.

"They're going to spend the night with their granddad. Come on, it'll be fun, I haven't had a night out since..." she paused. The last time she had spent a night without care was when they had been together, before they were taken. Kara suppressed the tears that were starting to pool and grinned, "I've got to get going," and without another word she slipped past him and walked out of the room leaving Lee alone, closing herself off again.

* * *

The Rec room was packed, every table full of people and various bottles of ambrosia. Karl was sat in the middle with Kara opposite, many empty bottles and shot glasses already lined the table. They had been drinking for a couple of hours and were starting to feel the effects, especially Kara. She had usually been able to hold her drink well, but she hadn't drunk for nearly a year and a half now and the effects were going straight to her legs.

Earlier she and Lee had brought over the twins. As usual they squirmed around, excited as the raptor flew them to the Galactica and then squealed happily when they saw their granddad. Kara had been shocked to see Roslin in Adama's quarters, looking relaxed without her traditional suits. She had also been great with the twins. It was painful to leave them for the night, but also nice to let her hair down.

"I think it's time to raise another toast," she yelled out to the room, standing unsteadily. Everyone cheered and held up their drinks. "To my oldest friend in the fleet, and for finally finding a woman to make an honest man out of him."

Everyone cheered again and downed their drinks as Karl sat laughing before lifting his glass, "to my best man and the craziest woman I have ever known."

Kara smiled proudly as everyone quickly poured themselves another drink and then downed it quickly. She glanced over briefly to the chair next to Karl where Lee was sitting. He hadn't drunk as much as the rest, but he was still worse for wear.

This wasn't how Lee really wanted to spend his evening. Even though Karl was getting married he couldn't help but be a little jealous of the friendship he shared with Kara. She had never been very explicit about how well they knew each other.

"How long have you known each other?" slurred Hotdog, as if he was reading Lee's mind.

Kara answered his question as she sat back down in her chair, "basic flight."

"So Helo, what was the infamous Starbuck like back then, bet she was a right goer?" Hotdog shouted again.

"Hey, this isn't about me," she retorted, feigning insult, the alcohol definitely dulling her inhabitations.

Lee shifted slightly; he didn't like the direction this conversation was going. For the last half an hour it had degenerated into more depravity. He'd known about Kara's promiscuity, he had been just as bad when he was younger, but still couldn't help the jealousy at hearing of her various conquests. For years all he had wanted to do was make love to Kara.

"Besides," continued Kara, "Helo won the tally for the most lays at the academy."

"Only because you spent weeks mooning over that Major."

_Major? _Lee had been witness to an incident with a Major back when Zak had just died, he hadn't known about another one. He was thinking back and trying to remember the stories Kara had told him when she responded.

"I was _not, _nor have I _ever,_ gone all gooey and pathetic over some guy." _Except for Lee Adama of course, _but she wasn't about to admit that to the room_. _She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, seeing him stare intently at his glass of ambrosia.

"Seriously? Helo had the most lay?" asked Kat laughing hysterically. "I always figured Starbuck for that role."

Kara filled her glass to the bream before messily downing it in three large gulps, "thanks Kat." She could see Lee was unimpressed, and felt annoyed he was judging her, especially as he had done some pretty wild things in his youth. But just when she thought it couldn't get any worse, Karl spoke out.

"I may have had the most," he said almost proudly, "but Starbuck managed something I never did, no matter how hard I tried."

"Helo..." she warned, but Karl was too drunk to care, or hold himself back.

"What did you do Starbuck?" shouted out Duck.

"Nothing, really."

"How can you say that?" blurted out Karl, "it was legendary! Starbuck here didn't just get one threesome, but she got two."

"Nice," commented Duck with approval. "Please tell me there were at least two women in that trio."

Kara grabbed and handful of chips and chucked them playfully in his direction, which bounced off his shoulder, "in your dreams Clelland."

"Definitely."

Karl interrupted before Kara could change the subject, "it was two sets of marines wasn't it?"

Kara didn't respond, seeing Lee down another glass of ambrosia, he had gone completely silent since this conversation had begun.

"How come you never got two at once Helo?" asked Kat as she nudged him.

"Hey, it wasn't from lack of trying, apparently not many women want to share a man."

"Apollo managed it," blurted out Kara before she could stop herself, causing him to splutter into his drink, looking up at her with wide blue eyes.

Karl slapped him on the back, "never thought you had it in you, Apollo. At basic training?"

Lee forced a smile, his face burning, remembering another drunken night when he'd confessed that little anecdote to Kara. "College," he replied to Karl's question, his eyes locked with Kara's even as various hands patted him on the back. Duck filled up his glass, which he quickly downed, wanting nothing more than to get out of the room.

"So Starbuck," carried on Duck as he chugged a gulp from the bottle. "How many people have you frakked in the fleet, apart from the obvious?"

Kara glared at him, "watch it Clelland."

Kat seemed undeterred, folding her arms in front of her chest. "Did you two ever frak?" she asked motioning between Kara and Karl, their hesitating silence speaking a thousand words. "I knew it!"

"It was one night," said Karl.

"Yeah right, " replied Kat in disbelief.

"Okay, one night, multiple times."

Lee had heard enough, pushing back his chair he stood up abruptly, turning to Karl briefly, "good luck for tomorrow." He then stormed out of the Rec room. Kara didn't care what anyone else thought as she shoved back and quickly followed him.

"What's with those two?" asked Kat, washing down another shot.

"Shut it Kat," replied Karl, guilt breaking through his drunkenness.

* * *

Lee had run off quicker than she thought, and she was decidedly unsteady on her feet. "Lee, wait," she called after him, ignoring the few crew members in the corridor. "Lee...!"

Finally he stopped, turning as she caught up, "What?"

"I..." she began, but didn't know what to say.

"Is that it Kara? Cause I'm in serious need of some aspirin and a rack."

"Look, it was just a bit of drunken banter."

"Sorry Kara, but I have no desire to sit down all night and listen to how I was just another in your long list of conquests," he replied bitterly and then walked away again.

"It not like that...Lee!" but he was gone.

_Frak._

Kara stood in the same spot for ages, silently cursing to herself. She had been pushing Lee away for weeks and finally he had cracked. After what seemed like an eternity she twisted and sharply kicked the wall, cussing as the pain shot through her foot.

"What did that bulkhead ever do to you?" asked Karl rounding the corner.

"Got in my frakking way," sneered Kara, flexing out her foot. Karl suddenly took her by the arm and started to guide her towards some crates that were lining the corridor. "Frak off Helo, I don't want to sit down."

"Tough, it's my bachelor party and I can demand what I want."

"Well that's a little juvenile."

"I'm not going to just sit by and watch my best man suffer alone."

"I'm great, really. Come on there's at least a few more bottles of ambrosia we're missing," she replied making to leave, but Karl didn't move. "I really need a drink Helo," but Karl sat down on the nearest crate and folded his arms in front of his chest. Kara sighed and thumped herself down next to him, "fine, but make it quick."

"Kara, how long have we known each other?" he asked rhetorically, to which Kara shrugged. "At least seven years, and in all that time I have never seen you run out of a room after a man before."

"Yeah, well, there's lot of things I've done recently which I didn't do back in basic."

"What's going on with you two?"

"Absolutely frakking nothing."

"And what do you want it to be?"

Kara shrugged lazily, "I dunno."

"Frak Kara, will you just answer the question?"

"What?! What is it you want from me?" she yelled out, thankful that the corridor seemed empty.

"Nothing Kara, I just hate seeing you punishing yourself like this."

"Yeah, well, you remember me Helo, self-destruct extraordinaire."

"Stop saying that about yourself."

"It's true, I frak everything up, always have, always will."

"You're the best pilot in the fleet Kara."

"I think the competition has been kind of depleted."

"Maybe so, but you were the best pilot _before_ everyone died. Back at the academy you used to love gloating to everyone about your prowess in the cockpit," he joked nudging her with his elbow.

"Oh gods, was I really that bad?"

"Yep, what changed you?"

"I met the Adama brothers," replied Kara with a smile, "and from then on I was completely screwed."

They were silent for a moment, completely unaware of the intruder who lurked just around the corner and listening intently.

"So what are you going to do?" asked Karl at last. Kara shrugged, wishing that the answer was simple, wishing that the cylons had never messed them up so badly. "The solution is simple Kara; tell him how you feel."

"Yeah, cause I'm really good at that. Can we just drop it okay? I'm beginning to sober up and this is one evening I really don't want to remember."

Karl smiled, "Everyone was talking about ditching the Rec room and having a triad drinking game in the guest quarters."

"Sounds interesting, what sort of game?"

"I'm sure we can think of something even more ingenious then your version of "shot tirade."

Kara laughed, "Frak, it's been years since we played that. Remember when you puked on Colonel Peters shoes?"

"How could I forget? I was made to walk around the concourse every night for two weeks."

"It was the funniest thing ever; I swear you literally went green."

Karl pulled her suddenly into a hug and placed a kiss on top of her head, "that's the Starbuck I remember."

"Yeah? Well you'll be regretting it tomorrow morning, but I promise to get you to that alter looking at least half alive."

They both seemed to remember that they were still drunk as they stood and started to totter down the corridor, "Starbuck?"

"What?"

"Am I really getting married tomorrow?"

"I'm afraid so toaster lover," she joked, dodging his nudge.

"Kara Thrace loves Lee Adama," chanted Karl in revenge, running as Kara chased after him.

As they disappeared, Dee could still hear Karl drunkenly singing the same tune with Kara shouting her protests only half seriously. She hadn't meant to spy on them, to overhear Kara's entire exchange with Lee, but she had been in the wrong place at the wrong time and then she couldn't pull herself away. Part of Dee had accepted Lee wasn't interested in her when he disappeared, but she had still mourned for him. Kara's return had given her hope that he was alive, but then she had been devastated when the lineage of her twins was revealed. Gaeta had found her in her rack crying, but there was little he could do to provide comfort. Then Lee had come back and his relationship with Kara hadn't seem to blossom. Dee had begun to hope again, praying that Lee would finally see that she was willing to be everything Kara wasn't, a wife. Then hearing Kara admit to her feelings sent panic throughout her body, if she didn't act fast, she would lose him for good.

Turning, she walked in the opposite direction, a small strut in her step.

* * *

Kara stared at the wall, the water cascading over her shoulders. The rest of the evening had been a blur; her plan of drinking herself into oblivion had worked a little too well. Now she felt as if she never wanted to drink alcohol again. Retching, she leapt out of the shower and vomited again into the toilet. A banging coming from the hatch echoed through her head.

"You alive in there Starbuck, you've been ages," shouted Karl from the other side of the hatch.

Kara cringed and stood up from the toilet, storming out of the head with her towel wrapped around her. She dug through the belongings she had packed, finding her secret stash of make-up. If she was going to look at least half human today, she would need help. Karl looked on in wonder as she quickly plastered it on with ease, covering up the dark circles and subtly adding some colour.

"Okay, who are you and what have you done with the real Starbuck?" asked Karl.

"What?"

"Never seen you wear make-up before, didn't know you owned any."

"Just because I never wear any, doesn't mean I don't know how to use it or that I don't care about my appearance. You missed a real treat last Colonial Day, I even wore a dress."

"Seriously? You own a dress?"

"I look great in a dress," she replied, remembering the look of wonderment on Lee's face when he saw her.

"Can I see it? Call it a wedding gift."

Kara snorted, "sorry, but that was a once in a life-time opportunity. Come on, we need to grab some coffee before we head to the altar."

They both succeeded in looking half human as they stood at the altar, their dress uniforms gleaming and looking smart. Only a few people were invited to the ceremony, the rest choosing not to come. Lee entered with his father a few minutes later also wearing their dress uniforms. Kara couldn't help but look over briefly, trying not to make it obvious, feeling his eyes burning into her soul.

Lee couldn't help but admire her as Kara stood at the front of the room. She looked amazing. He always thought she looked good, but today she had styled her hair neatly, showing off the longer length. He tried not to stare, ashamed at the way he had stormed away the previous night. She had been right; all it had been was a bit of pilot banter, but he had been jealous and let that get the better of his senses. He had ended up on his dad's couch, lying awake all night and thinking about how he had screwed up. Lena and Joseph slept soundly in a cot next to him and half way through the night he had gotten up and watched them slumber. _Their children. _Lee couldn't fault them, they were perfect and Kara had been amazing to bring them up on her own. If only they could be as good at sorting themselves out.

He suddenly felt a presence next to him and looked to the side to see Dee suddenly sitting next to him. "Hey, Dee," he said a little offhand, even though they hadn't really seen each other since his disappearance.

Everyone went quiet, but Kara saw them out of the corner of her eye, the petty officer shifting in her seat so that she could get closer to Lee. She suppressed the sinking feeling in her gut and focused on Sharon entering the room, beaming from head to toe in a long green gown.

Throughout the ceremony, Lee had not watched the nuptials taking place between Karl and Sharon. Despite looking in their direction, his eyes were fixed intently on Kara as she looked on seriously at her friend. Only when they were declared husband and wife did she smile broadly, the smile that pulled him in every time. He had no idea why Dee had chosen to sit next to him so closely, but if he shifted over he would have virtually sat on his father.

The small number in the room cheered as the new Mr and Mrs Agathon kissed and then exited the room. Adama had arranged for Karl to spend the night in Sharon's cell, which had been furnished with a larger bed and privacy curtains. It wasn't ideal, but it was also to protect Sharon from the crew members who hadn't accepted her as an ally.

It felt a little anti-climatic as the room began to empty. Kara glanced over at Lee, seeing him talking with his father with Dee hanging on every word. She had to get out of there feeling as if she was suffocating. She hoped no-one would notice as she fled from the room, ripping open her jacket as she went, which was pointless because it caught on her sash. Her head was pounding from the effects of the alcohol, her stomach still turning.

It didn't take her long to reach Adama's quarters, but she had managed to remove the sash and her jacket hung open. She knocked gently at the hatch, entering after the familiar voice inside called out. Kara's heart warmed immediately at seeing the former president sitting on the floor with Lena and Joseph crawling around her.

"Hello Major," said Roslin, "we were just finishing a drawing for you, how was the wedding?"

"Good. Is this for me?" asked Kara as she crouched down, smiling as Lena and Joseph immediately reached out for her. All they had drawn was a random sequence of squiggles on a piece of paper, but to her it was beautiful. "Wow, this is amazing."

"They had a good time with the Commander. How was the party last night?" she asked, making it sound as if it had been a civilised affair.

"I think we drank the ship's entire stash of ambrosia," replied Kara as she lifted Joseph into her lap, who immediately grabbed at the edge of her jacket with his little pudgy hand. She kissed the top of his head.

"They've missed you," smiled Roslin. "I don't think I have ever told you this, but I think you made the right decision to keep them."

Kara didn't respond, instead choosing to scoop up Lena into her other arm.

"There is a favour I want to ask of you," continued Roslin.

"If it involves the Gemenese praying over my babies, forget it."

"No, nothing like that. But I have managed to persuade Baltar to provide a small building in which to house the new school on New Caprica. It's a little small and bland, so I was wondering if you could paint a mural for one of the walls?"

"What makes you think I can paint?"

"Lieutenant Agathon mentioned something in your eulogy."

It was eerie to hear that someone had given a eulogy in her memory, but it was touching to know Karl had been the one to do it. "I don't think that would be possible, I'm the CAG now and..."

"Bill has agreed to release you for three days," interrupted Roslin. "I understand these two have never been on solid ground before and I'm sure you could all use a small vacation. You can stay in a guest tent near the school."

Kara thought for a moment and had nearly decided to decline when the hatch door burst open and Adama entered, closely followed by Lee, but with Dee seeming to follow his every move.

Kara suddenly felt very subconscious about herself before turning back to Roslin. "Sure, I think we could do with a few days away," she said, bouncing her babies happily on her lap.


	34. New Caprica Part One

Chapter 33

_"You know what we'll do to her if you don't," were the words that haunted her every waking moment, waiting for the footsteps to approach. Each time they came she wondered if it would be the last, her body finally giving up to the torture. But then the pain of leaving Lee alone overcame her, pushing her to hold on._

"_Kara," cooed the ever familiar voice of Leoben. "It doesn't have to be this way, let me take care of you."_

_She didn't respond as she lay there defeated on the floor, her hands chained and each breath a struggle. Each day it was getting harder to hold on._

"_I can tell them to stop; all you have to do is ask me."_

"_ne...never," she wheezed._

_Leoben looked displeased, rising to standing and walking away. But it didn't take long before she heard many footsteps returning, recognising the sound of the blonde cylon's stilettos echoing through her mind. Perhaps today would be the day they killed her. She could barely lift her head as the footsteps got louder, watching as two Simon models held Lee up under his arms and dragged him into the room, sitting him in his usual chair. She knew what was coming next..._

"_How many weapons reserves does the Galactica have?" asked the blonde as she grabbed Lee's lengthening hair and pulled his head back._

"_Frak...off," he stuttered in response, getting a punch in the jaw for his troubles._

"_You need to tell us everything," the cylon cooed into his ear "You know what we'll do to her if you don't."_

_The pattern was always the same. Tensing her body she readied herself as a centurion pulled on her chains, yanking her arms upwards followed by her body. The balls of her feet barely touched the floor as she hung limp from the chains, too ashamed to look up at those blue eyes._

_Everything was a swirl of light, images and sounds all merging into one big whole. For a moment it was as if she was watching her body from up on high, watching herself screaming out in pain. Then she would be inside her body again looking at the blonde cylon, hatred bubbling through her soul. Gathering her remaining strength she grabbed at her chains, lifting her feet off the floor and twisting them rapidly around the cylon's neck and chin. Kicking out, she revelled in the satisfying snap, watching as the cylon fell dead to the floor._

_But the satisfaction was only fleeting as hands grabbed at her body, dragging her to the floor and pinning her in place. She was vaguely aware of Lee's yells, begging them to stop as her arm was pulled out to the side and twisted. The sound of metallic footsteps closed in. She braced herself for the worst, but nothing could prepare her for the agony as the centurion slammed down on her twisted hand. She screamed out from the excruciating pain..._

It took Kara a moment to realise she was actually screaming as she sprung up in her bed. The sweat racked her body, causing the wet bed sheets to stick to her like glue. Her hand gripped at her heart, willing it to slow down as she breathed heavily. The dream had been so vivid, as if it had only just happened and she could feel the pain throbbing through her hand.

"Frak," she mumbled, pushing her hair back. She couldn't stop her face from scrunching up and the tears soon following. The constant nightmares had quickly melted away the healing she had achieved and suddenly it felt as if she had only just escaped the cylons.

The sharp rap on the hatch door made her flinch violently. She stared at it intently, the second rap also causing her body to shake. Kara pushed away the damp sheets and walked across the room, not caring that her tanks and briefs were also sodden from the sweat. The clang as she opened the hatch echoed around the room.

"What the frak is this Kara?" asked Lee shortly before the hatch had even fully opened. He was holding up a piece of paper and looking irritated.

"What?" asked Kara as she wiped her hand over her face in an attempt to hide any sign that she had been crying, whilst also partially hiding behind the hatch.

"This," he replied shaking the paper.

"Its frakking early Lee, get to the point."

"Hand-over notice? Care to tell me where you're going?"

She should have expected this visit. After all it had only been the day before when Roslin had asked her to go the planet. "I've been signed off to do an errand on New Caprica."

"And when were you going to tell me, or were you just going to leave the note?" he replied, the frustration evident in his voice.

"Lee, I'm really not in the mood for this."

"Well tough," he replied and pushed open the hatch flooding the room with light. Kara threw up her arms and walked away. "What's wrong Kara?" he added, the tone of his voice changed to one of concern.

"Nothing," she replied with her back still turned. She was expecting him to start shouting again, but then a hand gently touched her shoulder making her flinch slightly.

"You're soaked," he said gently. "Were you having a nightmare?"

Kara walked away from his touch and entered the small bathroom. Turning on the tap she cupped her hands under the faucet, splashing water onto her face. When she looked up at the mirror she saw him looking back at her reflection intently. "I'm sorry about the other night," she said, desperate to change the subject but Lee didn't respond, folding his arms and still looking at her reflection. "It was stupid drunken banter, I didn't mean..."

"I don't care about that Kara," he said and walked up to her again. "What's going on with you?"

"Nothing, just a bad dream, no biggie"

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Nope."

"I know what you're going through Kara, you think I don't still have dreams about..." he paused watching as Kara splashed more water on her face. "Is that why you're going away?"

"We're going away because I was asked to."

"And are you going to come back?"

"What? Of course I am, Lee we're only going for three days."

"So you're taking the kids too?"

Kara shrugged, "yeah, they've never even breathed fresh air before." She watched in the mirror as the look of disappointment washed over Lee's face. "You're worried I'm not going to come back aren't you?"

It took a moment for him to respond, choosing his words carefully, "I'm just going to miss them."

As if on cue the sound of wailing came from the adjoining room. Kara smiled and rolled her eyes before walking to the little nursery where Joseph was awake and wanting to tell the whole fleet of this fact, also waking up Lena in the process, who looked as if she was deciding whether or not to start screaming.

Kara scooped up Joseph into her arms and bounced him gently on her shoulder. "Good morning to you too little man," she said and placed a kiss on top of his head. He silenced nearly immediately, content in his mother's arms.

"I swear they inherited their ability to scream from you," joked Lee as he picked up Lena who had also started to become irritable.

"Why don't you come down to the planet too, you haven't seen it yet and I happen to know you have half of tomorrow off."

Lee was shocked, not expecting such an invite. "Are you sure you don't mind?"

"Of course not," she replied and then walked Joseph over to main room. She knew it was going to take forever to get them ready this morning, they weren't known for their co-operation when being dressed and going to the planet meant extra winter layers.

Lee felt the anger he had felt that morning at seeing Kara's handover note melt away as he watched her feed, wash and clothe their children. They had both struggled for ages to get them into their travel clothing, especially as they kept kicking their legs out. In the end they could barely move through the numerous layers, but that didn't stop them from bouncing around on Kara's lap as they settled into the raptor. Lee gave them both a kiss on the head and exited, standing to the side as the hatch closed down. Lena wailed as soon as the door was fully shut and jiggled about.

"Hey," whispered Kara into her short and soft curling hair. "You're going to have your daddy wrapped around your little finger when you grow up aren't you?" She settled back for the ride, thankful that what had begun as a fight with Lee had softened quickly.

* * *

The journey down to the planet only took twenty minutes, but it seemed a lot longer with two over-excited infants on her lap. As soon as they entered the planet's atmosphere, Kara had strapped them into a sling against her chest, which was easier said than done when they could barely move due to their many layers of clothing. She had also exchanged her usual Colonial Fleet uniform for slacks that morning.

Roslin was waiting as soon as they landed, greeting them with a warm smile. At first the babies were shy, but after a few moments they recognised her and welcomed her attentions.

"Thank you for coming Major," said the former President.

"It's good to get away from the Pegasus for a while," she replied.

"Of course, how is the ship doing since Admiral Cain was killed?"

"They're getting there, still in shock and laying most of the blame in one direction," she motioned towards her chin over Roslin's shoulder towards Colonial One.

"Baltar."

"The one and only," replied Kara with a slight grimace. In truth the entire ship was calling out for his blood and there was even a poll going as to who would be the one to shed it. When Kara had found out she had been tempted to put a bet down for herself, but refrained, ordering them to stop the poll.

"He's just as popular down here. It took me ages to acquisition the small building for the school, and that was only because I told him it was for a food store. I hate to see what has happened to the fleet since he took over."

"Well, if it's any consolation, I voted for you."

Roslin smiled, "come on, I'll show you to your tent."

Kara followed closely behind Roslin, playing with Lena and Joseph's feet as they bounced in their sling. The air was dusty and cold with a constant wind, causing the fabric from the tents to flap noisily. Kara had never seen the ordinary citizens of the fleet and it was strange to see them milling about free from the confines of their ships. It was no wonder so many wanted to settle on the planet as soon as possible, they must have been incredibly bored. Sometimes she was grateful for living on a Battlestar, it may be monotonous some days but at least she had something useful to do.

A few people glanced in her direction, staring at the babies in wonder. Many of them had heard of the infamous twins, agog at seeing them down on the planet's surface. Most of the staring faces didn't bother her, until she passed three men who were standing together, looking as if they didn't belong with the other Colonials. One of them was a large man with dark skin, with an angry look. Kara distrusted him immediately, staring him down as she passed. But the man did not flinch, his eyes constantly tracking her movements. She finally turned her glance away when Roslin called out that she was going the wrong way. After a few minutes they reached a large tent with children running in and out through the entrance.

"As you can guess this is the school," said Roslin, smiling as the children played around her.

"Can all the children of the fleet fit in there?" asked Kara, shocked by the smallness of the tent.

"Unfortunately not, this is why most parents have chosen to teach their own children. We have a small number here, but hopefully with a new building we can attract more into starting school."

Kara nodded, wondering what would become of the remains of the fleet if none of the children were schooled. She had achieved good grades at school, especially in sports, which was enough to earn a scholarship to college and then a place in the Colonial Fleet Academy. "Where's the new building?"

"Part of that complex over there," said Roslin pointing over towards a large building that looked as if it was still in the process of being built.

"What's the rest of the building for?"

"We're not sure yet. Baltar decommissioned an old ship to reuse the materials. There are rumours going around about its use, some are guessing it might even be some type of prison."

"Why would he need one of those, we already have the Astral Queen."

"As I said, it is just what some are guessing. I personally think he's building himself some sort of town hall to live in."

"Nice, while everyone else has to rough it in tents. Makes me appreciate my rack a whole lot more."

After Roslin showed Kara her temporary accommodation, which consisted of a bland tent, a double bed, an armchair and a cot, she then guided her over to the new building. A classroom assistant took the twins to look after. The new school room was not much larger than the tent and she had trouble seeing how it was going to be turned into a thriving school.

"I know it's small," said Roslin as she took a turn about the room. "We're going to move the current tent over here and adjoin them, so there will be double the space."

"Right," replied Kara. She motioned towards the end wall, which was bathed in light. "I guess that's where you're thinking for the mural?"

Roslin nodded, "how good are you then?"

"I doubt you would have asked me here if you thought I didn't have the chops to paint a mural."

"Actually I have no idea how good you are."

Kara placed her hands on her hips and looked over at the former President with suspicion, "you didn't just call me down here to paint a wall did you?"

"No I didn't," replied Roslin honestly.

Kara was tempted to walk straight out of there and fly back to the Pegasus. Something hadn't felt right about New Caprica since she had passed those men and she doubted Roslin was about to put her mind at ease. "And how else could I possibly help the former President of the Colonies?"

"Baltar."

Now she was really confused, "Baltar?"

"He's withholding supplies to the settlers here, allowing outside influences to take control."

"What sort of influences?" she asked, not sure she wanted to know the response.

"People who like to think they are in control of the fleet."

"The black market," she replied as a statement rather than a question.

"You're aware of their practices?"

"Where do you think I got my stogie stash from?"

"It's been in existence since the cylons attacked, everyone knows about them, the old man even called them a necessary evil."

"But?"

"I've always suspected their leader, Phelan, has condoned immoral practices, but I could never bring him down. Now he's influencing Baltar and it needs to stop."

Kara had a bad feeling where this conversation was going. "A heads up would have been nice. I wouldn't have left my sidearm, let alone bring my children down here," she said harshly.

"Calm down Major, I have no desire for any bloodshed."

"Well, no offence but I'm not exactly the best negotiator. I'm usually the person you send in to sort out a problem by force."

"You're a Colonial Fleet officer," replied Roslin strongly. "And the President seems to be intimidated by you."

_Frakking Baltar is scared of phantoms, _thought Kara, having been witness to his crazy ramblings to no-one in particular. "So you just want me to have a word with the lovely President," she stated with insincere sweetness, wondering how she managed to be roped in by one of Roslin's unofficial plans again.

* * *

Her better judgement told her to say no to Roslin, to paint the mural and then walk away, but the former President was persuasive and she found herself walking slowly towards Colonial One. She trudged heavily through the dirt until she reached the ship, which didn't look so impressive without the vacuum of space surrounding it. The marines standing guard recognised her and stood to the side and she climbed on board.

The view out of the windows was definitely different. Kara remembered the last time she had been in this room, she had been heavily pregnant and Roslin had asked her to give up her babies. It had been a no-brainer to refuse without hesitation.

She sat in a chair in front of the gaudy desk and looked around the room, turning up her nose at the egotistical portrait of the President himself on the wall, which Baltar had hung in replacement of the survivor count board. Kara had liked that board, it was respectful. She felt a shiver run down her spine as she remembered the stupid night spent with him, wondering how she could allow such a man to frak her when all she had wanted to do was spend the night with Lee. It was still a bit of blur how she had allowed it to happen, blaming temporary insanity.

It was then that Kara heard the noises from the next room, telling her where the President was and what he was doing. She rolled her eyes. Kicking up her foot on the desk, she bided the time polishing her boot.

"You owe me one big time Roslin," she muttered as she scrubbed hard at a scuff near her heel.

It didn't take long before the noises stopped and a giggling brunette exited the room barely dressed, followed by Baltar who was wearing a silken robe. They both stopped dead when they saw Kara, her feet still up on the desk and her arms folded in front of her chest.

"Gaius, what is this woman doing here, is she next?" the woman asked, looking as if she was about to burst into tears.

"No thanks, been there, done that, screamed out the wrong name," replied Kara with a snide smile.

"Krysta," said Baltar in the friendliest tone possible, though he was obviously perturbed by his visitor. "It's been lovely, but I have some business to discuss with Miss Thrace here. Why don't you go below and ask the cook to make us some lunch." The woman gave Kara a dirty look and walked out of the room, grabbing a coat as she went. "And to what do I owe the pleasure Major?" he asked sitting behind his desk, but his attention seemed to be focused over her shoulder.

Kara was used to this behaviour from him, the genius who spent most of his time arguing with thin air. "I understand you have possession of certain merchandise that you're withholding from the fleet," she said cutting to the chase.

"I see the lovely Laura Roslin has stepped up to using different modes of persuasion," replied Baltar cordially.

"She did send me, apparently there are many people out there going without, whilst you live here with your whores to keep you company and all the food you want."

"If only it was that simple Major. So are you here to discuss the food distribution within the fleet, because that could take a while."

"No I'm not, but I am here to discuss your association with certain members of the fleet," she said using her best negotiating voice. There was suddenly a noise from behind her and Kara turned to see the three men she had seen before. She didn't flinch as she watched them enter and stand inside the room, not showing her sudden fear as she turned back and smiled at Baltar. "As I was saying."

"What _were_ you saying?" asked a deep and gravelly voice Kara guessed belonged to the leader, Phelan. She ignored her heart that was starting to race as adrenaline pumped around her body.

"Ah, Phelan," said Baltar a little nervously. "I don't believe you've met Major Thrace from the Pegasus."

Kara wasn't oblivious to the reason why Baltar dropped her rank into the conversation, letting their guests know she was not a person they could get away messing with. "As I was saying, many people seem to be concerned with the company you keep."

"By people I'm assuming Laura Roslin and now she's brought in the military," added Baltar cooly.

"Just me, for now," replied Kara, all too aware of the people standing behind her, their presence seeming ever closer. "I understand you've withheld a number of supplies from the school, inflated the prices when they have nothing to bargain with."

"You should know Major," boomed Phelan, his voice definitely closer now, "that a society needs a market in order to keep going."

"Maybe so, but it stops today. You're going to give that school the supplies they need and the doctors the medication they need." She stood up from her chair, turning to see Phelan only a few paces from her chair.

"Or what Major?"

Kara walked right up to him until she was in his face, completely fearless. She could sense his body tensing slightly at her proximity. No words needed to be said, the warning was clear. Instead she just stepped past him and headed for the exit.

"A young woman with two children should be careful walking around in a crowded and dark metropolis, I wouldn't want anything untoward to happen her," called out Phelan as Kara exited the room, not stopping despite his words.

It was only until she had gotten a few metres from the ship that she began running towards the school tent, wishing that she was faster and desperate to see her children. Phelan's threat had been clear and it wasn't just aimed towards her. It seemed to take forever to reach the tent, the sounds of giggling babies bringing relief to her heart. Lena and Joseph were playing happily on a blanket with two other babies.

"Is everything okay?" asked Roslin.

"Fine, Baltar just had a few visitors while I was there," replied Kara as she settled on the floor, smiling as her babies crawled straight over to her. They looked content with their new surroundings, but then they always seemed happy wherever they were. "Hey there, have you been having fun whilst your mom harasses the President?" She only got a gurgle in response, but that was enough.

"They're adorable," said a friendly voice and Kara looked up to see a kind looking woman who was also holding a child who looked to be about one year old. She felt the familiarity hit her straight away; it was the child from her dream.

Pushing away the desire to ask about the child, she responded kindly, "thank you."

"I can't imagine what it must be like to handle two. I can barely manage with this little one."

"It involves a little bribery," joked Kara. "What's her name?"

"Isis."

Kara nodded, but she knew instinctively Isis was not her real name. She looked up and saw the concern etched across Roslin's face. A few moments later she called the woman and Isis away to assist her with an errand, but she left Kara without a doubt. The baby was Hera Agathon.

* * *

The bad thing about paint was it had the tendency to spread everywhere. Kara had kept her babies in the same room as she worked, wanting to keep them close. Part of her had thought Phelan was just all talk, but Roslin had been worried when told of their threat. Apparently when he made a threat he usually followed through with it.

It was now early evening and she was in desperate need for a shower to wash off the paint flakes. She had forgotten how much hard work a large painting was and she felt sweaty and grubby. Despite her reluctance she entrusted Roslin to mind the babies, relieved that there were others still in the school tent with her.

There were only a few Colonials milling about in the small settlement, and she soon found out why, they were all in the wash tents. Kara ended up queuing for ages for a shower cubicle, making her appreciate the cramped head on Galactica a whole lot more. Here there were also families, all squashed in to share the rationed water. It also wasn't worth the wait for the five minutes of water rations she had, which was not enough to remove the specks of paint in her hair.

It was on the way back to the school with damp and messy hair that she saw Phelan standing by one of the tents with three different men than before. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end, bracing herself to attack, but they did nothing, their stares providing enough intimidation. If it was possible, they seemed even more pissed off than before.

She threw aside the tent flap to the school and stormed in, halting abruptly as a pair of blue eyes met her gaze. She was too shocked to speak. Lee was sitting cross-legged on the floor with Joseph in his lap and looking at her intently. He was wearing his duty blues, which was probably why Phelan and his men seemed increasingly annoyed and focused on the school.

"You're a day early," she said, finally finding her voice. The other parents around the room seemed to have stopped to look.

"Well the CAG didn't leave me much to do and I now owe Showboat a big favour," he replied, dangling his dogtags in front of Joseph who grabbed at them with a squeal, before looking back at her. "So I thought I would come early, is that okay?"

Kara leant down and picked up Lena, "come on, we need to put these two to bed."

Lee followed her obediently, picking up Joseph who voiced his objection at losing his grip on the dogtag, and also picking up his overnight bag. They exited the school tent, with Kara leading him through the maze of tents. She could sense the presence of Phelan staring her down as she entered her small temporary accommodation.

"It's not much," said Kara as she settled Lena down on the bed between some cushions.

"Looks about the same as the quarters on the Galactica."

"Apart from the absence of a bathroom, believe me it makes a big difference. I don't know how we're all expected to survive down here."

"It's better than drifting around space forever."

"I don't know about that, at least on a ship you can escape from the cylons. If they found us here we wouldn't stand a chance."

"True," said Lee as he placed Joseph next to Lena. They both set about feeding them and getting them ready for bed, working well together until the babies were finally asleep, placed in a cot next to the bed.

"So are you going to tell me why those four men outside seem to have taken a keen interest in watching wherever you go?" asked Lee as he settled into the arm chair.

Kara shrugged, "my wonderful personality?"

"Kara."

"Roslin asked me to have a word with Baltar about his association with certain groups in the fleet, apparently they like withholding supplies and selling them at inflated prices."

"They've always done that since the end of the Colonies. Half of the crew used to disappear to their ships for some shady R & R."

"I know that Lee, frak they used to be my main source of stogies, but they're withholding food and medicine. Roslin mentioned they have more than just their _escort _service, taking orphaned kids."

"What?" replied Lee. He couldn't imagine how people could do something so wrong when their entire civilization was on the brink of extinction. "So I guess Baltar told them of your visit?"

"No, they turned up, told me to watch my back."

"Frak Kara, you sure know how to make friends quickly."

"You know me," she replied with a tired smile. "So why have you really come here so early?"

"Honestly? I missed them. I've brought the items you wanted me to get," he said then opened up his overnight bag, pulling out a little black bag. "I also found this in your quarters while I was it," he said and pulled out a raggedy bunny teddy bear, "how did you find Mr Biggles?"

"Mr Who?" asked Kara bemused.

""Mr Biggles, I took this bunny with me everywhere when I was a kid, absolutely devastated when I lost him."

Kara suppressed the urge to laugh, "it Lee, not him, it's just a soft toy."

"Excuse me but Mr Biggles is not just a soft toy," he replied feigning offence, "this soft toy has happened to survive being thrown in a lake, down a small cliff _and_ a nuclear holocaust. He should be honoured."

Kara couldn't help but laugh this time, "how'd you get it back from the cliff fall?"

"I think I cried until dad climbed down and rescued him."

"Aw, that's sweet, really," joked Kara, slightly jealous that he'd possessed something of such sentimental value. When she was growing up, Kara's mother hadn't believed in giving her toys so she found her own entertainment most of the time. This usually involved drawing picture after picture or getting into trouble. "Apparently you left _him _when you visited the old man once."

Lee paused for a moment as if he was trying to remember when that had happened. He then picked up the small black bag, "what's in this thing anyway, it's heavy."

"It's for you actually, take a look."

Kara sat herself down on the bed and lifted her feet up into a cross-legged position as Lee opened the bag and smiled at the contents. Inside contained all of the pictures she had taken of the twins since they were born. "Frak Kara, there must be hundreds of pictures in here."

She shrugged, "I always thought you were still alive somewhere, so I took the pictures so you could see them."

"I should've been there to see it for myself."

"It's not your fault Lee."

"If we hadn't gone in that raptor..."

"You don't know where we would be now. You could've been taken out in a viper a week later or I could. It happened Lee and there's no way to turn back the clock."

Lee didn't respond, and looked through the pictures. They seemed to be in reverse order so Lena and Joseph got progressively younger as he looked through until he found a picture of the two of them lying next to each other in their little incubator. "They were so tiny."

"Didn't feel that way when they were inside me."

Lee pulled out another picture, showing Kara sitting in the mess, her stomach protruding out largely, "holy frak."

"Told you."

"I wish I'd seen it for real."

Kara didn't respond and they both went quiet, wondering what could have been if he was there for the birth, if the cylons hadn't torn them apart and frakked them up so badly. Lee looked through the pictures over and over until he fell asleep slumped in the armchair and Kara soon followed.

_The large opera house loomed in front of her as she ran through the corridors, desperately trying to find the cries from her babies as they wailed helplessly. She yelled out soundlessly as she searched. Suddenly she came to an alcove, which looked down at the entire auditorium. The light was dazzling as she looked across at the opposite alcove, seeing Roslin standing there as if she was also searching for the noise. Kara didn't pause for too long, sprinting down the nearest staircase as fast as possible, the cries getting stronger and stronger._

Kara jolted awake, but the sound of crying did not dissipate. Rolling quickly it took a moment for her to realise the noise was coming from the cot next to the bed where Joseph and Lena were wailing at the top of their lungs.

Lee sprang up suddenly from the armchair, but he didn't get far before the wire came round his neck, jerking him suddenly backwards. Thrashing around he grabbed at his neck, desperate and fighting for breath.


	35. New Caprica Part Two

Chapter 34

The sound of his screaming children shook Lee from his sleep with a jolt, telling him immediately that something was seriously wrong. But he had barely sprung from the armchair before the wire came around his neck, jerking him violently backwards.

Gasping for breath he reached up towards the wire, desperately attempting to pull it away from his neck with all of his strength.

Kara heard Lee's struggle as she rolled on the bed towards her twins who were still screaming loudly. Turning towards him she saw him struggling backwards as a wire garrotted him. She wasted no time. Leaping from the bed she bounded towards the intruder, only to be knocked back as another person entered the tent, pushing her away hard. Landing flat on her back she instinctively kicked out her leg in a low sweep, connecting with the back of the second intruder's knees as he turned towards Lee, sending him crashing to the floor backwards. Kara scrambled towards her fallen foe and grabbing his hair, she pulled his head up briefly before slamming it against the floor knocking the man out cold.

Lee had finally managed to grab at his assailant's clothing, pulling hard he tried to pull the hands away but to no avail. He could see spots in front of his vision and everything was turning into a blur and impending darkness.

The sudden sound of gun shots echoed through his ears and the wire came loose from his neck. As his vision cleared he could see Kara laid out on the floor next to another male, a gun held up in her hand.

The tent went eerily quiet for a few agonising moments. The twins were no longer crying, merely gurgling happily to themselves from their cot. Lee then started to cough and splutter as he took in a deep breath of air. Kara was about to place down the gun when another person threw open the flap to the tent causing her to raise it again with a start.

"Is everything okay here?" came the commanding voice of a marine. "I heard shots fired."

Kara ignored him; throwing down the gun she pushed herself up off the floor and ran over to the cot, desperate to see her babies.

"Are you okay Sir?" asked the marine again, kneeling down by Lee who was gripping at his throat.

"I'm fine," he wheezed, then pushed himself to standing and walking over to the cot.

Kara was looking over the rail with a relieved smile on her face. Inside the crib their babies were lying wide awake and alert. Neither seemed to be distressed anymore and Lena was biding her time by sucking on her foot. Kara and Lee glanced at each other briefly, each wondering the same thing; _what had made them start crying before the attack? _

The marine reached for the shot man's neck stating, "He's dead, but the other one is still breathing."

Another marine then entered the tent followed by Roslin who was dressed in a silken dressing gown. "What happened here?" she demanded as if she was still President.

Lee turned away from the cot and faced Roslin. "They came into the tent and attacked us," he said rubbing his neck, which was sore and bleeding slightly.

"They're Phelan's men," added Kara bitterly as she stroked the bottom of Joseph's foot.

"What were they doing in here?" asked the marine as he looked down at the unconscious man.

"Saying hello," answered Kara with a sneer.

"Where did the gun come from?" asked Roslin.

"I knocked out the first guy and then used his gun to take out the one who was strangling Lee."

"Thanks for that by the way," added Lee rubbing his neck.

"You should get your neck seen to."

"I'm not leaving their side," he replied gesturing to the cot. "Cottle's planet side so I'll see him tomorrow."

Kara turned to the marine, "get them out of here."

"Yes sir," replied the marine, then nodded to his companion and together they carried out the dead man. The other male was starting to come round when they returned, escorting him out by lifting him up from under his arms.

"I'm sorry I got you involved in this," said Roslin diplomatically once the marines had gone.

Kara chose not to answer her, considering it would be best not to voice what she was currently feeling towards the former President. She picked up the gun from the floor and released the shot from the chamber with a loud click, making Roslin flinch.

"I'll have marines standing guard outside your tent," added Roslin with a small smile.

"Right, you do that," replied Kara, sitting back down on the bed and placing the gun under her pillow.

Roslin seemed to sense she was no longer welcome in the tent and left with a small nod towards Lee. As soon as she was gone, he gave Kara a disapproving look.

"What?"

"That was a little harsh Kara."

"I don't give a frak, it may have escaped your notice Lee but we nearly died tonight."

"Like I need reminding," replied Lee, wincing as he touched the wound on his neck.

"I bet that smarts," replied Kara. She pushed herself off the bed and took the gun from underneath the pillow. "I'll be back in a minute."

Lee watched over the cot as he waited for Kara to return. Lena and Joseph had already fallen asleep again, looking peaceful as they lay next to each other. A few minutes ago they had been screaming at the top of their lungs. "What made you cry?" asked Lee quietly. He had been extremely sceptical when he found out about the Gemenese story concerning the birth of a set of twins, but he was starting to believe it now. There was something so naturally intuitive about his children that was definitely special.

The sound of the tent flap opening again made him dart around but it was only Kara. "Everything okay?" he asked. She was carrying a small bowl and a cloth.

"All quiet, there's a marine outside," she replied and placed the bowl down on the bed. Dipping the cloth in the warm water she walked over to Lee and placed it onto his neck.

Lee winced immediately, "ouch."

"Stop being a baby, it's not that bad." She carried on cleaning up the wound, with Lee scrunching up his face.

"Frak, Kara" he exclaimed as she touched one area at the front of his throat.

"What?"

"I guess nursing is a skill you haven't mastered yet."

Kara became a little frustrated and threw the cloth into the bowl with a splash, "do it yourself then."

"Kara," said Lee simply, holding out the cloth, which she grabbed forcefully then carried on cleaning his neck. She tried her best to be gentle, but Lee still winced until she finished. Afterwards they sat silently for a few moments.

"I shouldn't have gotten involved," said Kara after a while.

"It's what anyone would do," replied Lee as he settled back down into the armchair. "I'd be tempted to blast a few rounds into Phelan's chest if I ever saw him again."

"Not if I get there first."

"Be careful Kara, I really think they were trying to send a clear message tonight. They know who we are and that still didn't stop them."

"They need to be stopped."

"Not today, we report back and let my father deal with it, okay?"

Kara seemed unimpressed with that idea, but then she hadn't come down to New Caprica in order to deal with corrupt individuals. She was here to help the school and that is what she planned to do, with one possible side venture. "There's something else, and I know it'll make me sound slightly crazy."

"Even more than normal?" joked Lee.

"I've had these dreams, it's always the same thing," started Kara seriously, ignoring Lee's jibe. "I'm in this large building and I can hear Lena and Joseph crying, but I can't find them." Lee suddenly looked serious, knowing. "What?"

"But all you can find is another child," he finished.

Kara looked dumbstruck, "you've had the same dream?"

"Not since I returned to the fleet, but it was the same. I had no idea what it was about, I thought it was just linked to what happened."

"I know who the child is, it's Hera Agathon."

"I thought she died just after she was born?"

"That's what everyone was told, but I know it's her."

"Why would they lie?" asked Lee, but he suspected the answer.

"Probably because she's half cylon, Roslin probably thought she should be hidden."

"You think Roslin's involved?"

"Of course, who else would be able to get away with something like that? There's only one other person who must know and I plan on seeing him tomorrow."

"And if _he _confirms it, what are you going to do?"

Kara shrugged, "give her back to her rightful parents."

"Frak Kara," replied Lee, slightly incredulously, "you've done some pretty insane things in your life, but taking children? You're looking to get yourself killed."

"Lee, I'm not that stupid. But I will need your help."

"What do you need me to do?" asked Lee in a way that let her know he could be relied upon.

"Take the kids to the Galactica tomorrow morning. I need you to have a word with the old man."

Lee looked up at Kara as she smiled her normal conniving Starbuck smile that let him know she was hatching some kind of plan.

Cottle didn't look happy to see them when they entered the medical tent the following morning, with Kara carrying the twins in their usual sling. Fortunately the rest of the night was uneventful and they had managed to get a few hours sleep until Lena and Joseph decided it was time for them all to wake up. The good doctor was smoking his usual cigarette, extinguishing it when saw them enter. Even he knew better then to smoke in front of the twins.

"What have you done this time?" he asked gruffly, noticing the cut around Lee's neck. "Looks like you've been garrotted."

"That's exactly what happened doc," replied Lee.

Cottle mumbled something incoherently, but they could guess it wasn't polite. "In here," he added much more clearly, "I'm only down here for three days. You couldn't wait to get strangled until I was back on the Galactica?"

"Sorry doc, next time I'll ask them to try and kill me at a more convenient time," answered Lee dryly and then hopped up onto a gurney. It was evident that the supplies on New Caprica were lacking compared to the Battlestars and there was no sterile area for surgery. The medical tent was noticeably bleak with only a few beds and a nurse's station. Luckily there was no else in the tent that morning and it was quiet.

Cottle took a quick look at Lee's neck, frowning as he carried out the examination. "It looks like you've already cleaned it up, just keep it clean and you'll live."

"Thanks doc," replied Lee unenthusiastically, he felt a bit of an idiot to have wasted the doc's time.

"And how are my two favourite troublemakers?" said Cottle, directing his words to Lena and Joseph who kicked out there legs excitedly. He then looked up towards Kara, "when you return to the Galactica come and see me, I need to give them their first set of shots."

"Great," replied Kara. "Didn't we leave all the illnesses back on the Colonies?"

"I wish. There's still plenty going around the fleet. We even had to isolate some of the smaller ships due to contagion a few months after the attacks."

"Anything serious?" asked Kara suddenly concerned.

"Just the usual, Aerilon mumps, Picon fever, it's best to inoculate as much as possible until the supply of vaccinations runs out. Now if that's everything get out of here."

"Not quite doc."

"This better be important Major, I have twenty sick families to visit today."

"Hera Agathon," stated Kara cutting to the chase. Cottle seemed a little perturbed by hearing that name, staying silent. "Is she alive?"

She had expected him to lie, or skirt around the truth but he didn't, "I guess you wouldn't be here if you didn't already know."

"Why did you do it?"

"That's not for me to answer, I just followed orders."

"Roslin," stated Kara matter-of-factly.

"_President _Roslin."

"And my father?" asked Lee joining the conversation, but only part of him wanted to know the answer. "Does he know?"

"No, as I understand it only myself and the former President know."

"Right," answered Kara bluntly and started to make her way out of the tent. She wasn't angry at the good doctor. He was right, he had been under orders. She herself had also gone beyond her duty and common sense in following Roslin's request to search for the Arrow of Apollo. She turned back to Cottle as she was about to leave, noticing that he had lit up and cigarette, and nodded her head briefly. Once outside she cursed loudly and then stroked the twin's foot by way of apology.

"It was the answer you were expecting wasn't it?" asked Lee, curious why Kara looked a little shell-shocked.

"Yeah, but part of me still couldn't believe she could really do it. Does she have any idea what she's done to Sharon?"

"I don't think she did it out of malice Kara. If the cylons ever found Hera..."

"I know, but it's still wrong and I intend to put it right."

As the raptor docked slowly with the Galactica, Lee found himself feeling exhausted. He had barely slept and looking after the twins took a lot of work, especially when they bounced around excitedly inside the raptor. They were definitely their mothers' offspring, perfectly as ease when flying. He wondered if they would follow in their parent's footsteps, then shook away that thought, not wanting to expose them to the dangers of flying a viper, especially if they went at it with the same ferocity as Kara.

He had given up trying to assemble the sling so instead he held onto Lena and Joseph with one arm and sat them up in the other. Lee nodded to various crew members as he took the long route up to his father's quarters. As he went there was a distinct lack of the usual activity, instead most of the crew members seemed to be busying themselves with routine maintenance. They all looked decidedly bored and redundant.

As he turned a corner he nearly collided straight into Dee, who seemed flustered to see him, straightening her hair nervously, "hi."

"Hey Dee," replied Lee, struggling slightly with the twins as they wriggled around suddenly.

"I can't believe how much they've grown," she said with a smile and tickling the side of Joseph's leg, who giggled in response. "Would you like a hand?"

"Um, no thanks, I think I can manage," the conversation seemed awkward somehow and Lee wanted nothing more than to escape down the corridor. He wasn't blind; he knew that Dee had liked him before his capture. It had been especially obvious when Kara was away on Caprica and back then he had gladly welcomed the attentions of another woman, but now a relationship with her was the far from his mind. "Um, how are you?"

"I'm good," she replied as good naturedly as normal. It wasn't that Lee didn't find her attractive, she was definitely beautiful, but she wasn't Kara, no-where near. Dee was always so easy to please, which most men would love, but Lee preferred a more challenging woman and Kara definitely fit that profile.

"Look Dee, I would really like to catch up but..."

"Great, because a few of us have been given some downtime at the end of the month, it would good if you could join us."

She looked so earnest that Lee didn't know what to say, "Erm, I'm not sure."

"I'm sure Kara will look after these little ones." She smiled sweetly, looking up attentively.

"Sure, I'll see what I can do."

"Great," her grin wider now. "I'll see you soon," she said and suddenly gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before bounding down the corridor.

Lee was completely shocked, looking down at the twins he asked them, "did that seriously happen?" Lena and Joseph looked back up at him with their bright blue eyes, looking a little confused. "Guess you two aren't sure either huh? Frak."

He wasted no time walking to his father's quarters and banged on the hatch. Adama answered after a few moments, smiling warmly at his grandchildren.

"I got your message," he said as he took Joseph from Lee's arms. "Care to tell me what's going on and why the frak you look as if you've been strangled."

Lee raised his hand to his neck subconsciously, meeting Lena's hand as she reached up to do the same. "Because I _was_ strangled, but that's not the reason why I'm here."

Adama frowned, "then why are you here?" He sat down on his couch and placed Joseph on the floor who started crawling off immediately to explore the room.

Lee also placed down Lena and she immediately crawled off after her brother. He sat down across from his father keeping one eye on his children's whereabouts.

"So?" asked Adama.

"It's about Hera Agathon."

"What about her?"

"She's alive."

"What? Are you sure, how is that possible?"

"Roslin and Doc Cottle faked her death; she's currently living down on New Caprica."

Adama shot up to standing, obviously furious, "I trusted her."

"I don't know why she did it, but I think she must have been trying to hide her in case the cylons found us."

"Has she confirmed it's really Hera?"

"No, but Cottle did."

"Cottle," muttered Adama as he paced around the room.

"He was under orders from the President."

"He was also under _my_ command."

The conversation paused, the only sounds coming from Joseph and Lena as they played on the floor. Adama had left a few toys next to the couch for when they visited. After a few minutes Adama picked up his phone and spoke to the CIC, "I need Lieutenant Agathon and Sharon brought up here immediately...no, just an armed guard, no leg chains are necessary."

Lee looked at him a little puzzled as he hung up the phone, "are you trusting her now?"

"Over the past few weeks we've been talking a lot. I trust her, she's one of us now."

"Are you sure that's not just her wanting you to believe that?" asked Lee, he distrusted the cylons, hated them with a passion. "It may have escaped your notice but I happen to have had firsthand experience of their lies."

"Of course I know what they did to you and Kara, what do you take me for?"

"I dunno dad, but suddenly your letting cylons roam around the ship freely," his voice was raised and angry. Lena wailed, no longer interested in her toys. "Frak," muttered Lee and quickly swept her up, her tears stopping immediately. "Sorry, I didn't mean to shout," he said kissing the top of her head. He looked down at Joseph who was tugging on the bottom of his slacks and looking forlorn. Lee sat down on the floor and scooped him into his lap with Lena.

"You're a natural," said Adama looking down with pride.

"I have no idea if I'm doing this right."

"You never do, especially in the beginning. You'll be fine."

"Kara's a natural, I don't know if I could ever be like that."

"She's had more time to get used to it, believe me she was just as nervous at first."

Lee didn't respond, instead he dangled his dogtags in front of his children who grabbed out at them with their little chubby hands. Somehow it felt a little strange to be discussing parenting with his father, especially having criticised the old man for so long. Privately he hoped Lena and Joseph would never grow up the way he had; hoping each day that their father would come home, the birthday presents that were obviously brought by their mother. And then there was his mother, of whom he was damn sure he would never be like. He wanted nothing more than his children to grow up happy.

There was a loud rap on the hatch and Adama walked over to open it. Sharon and Karl were standing together with two armed guards. Adama motioned for the marines to leave before guiding the newlywed couple inside. Instinctively Lee pulled Lena and Joseph closer towards him despite their protesting wriggles, which didn't go unnoticed to the couple standing opposite. Sharon seemed undeterred, crouching down she smiled at them and waved.

"Hi there," she said and then looked up at Lee. "They're amazing."

Lee shifted, he felt suddenly guilty that he distrusted the cylon so much, "thanks."

"There's something we need to tell you," interrupted Adama. Sharon rose back up to standing and stood next to her husband. "Some information has come to light; you might want to sit down." The couple briefly glanced at each other before sitting down on the couch their hands grasped. Lee felt a pang of jealousy strike him as he watched, despite their clear differences Sharon and Karl undoubtedly loved each other and they were now married.

"Your daughter is alive," continued Adama making Sharon gasp.

"What?" exclaimed Karl, his grip on Sharon's hand tightening. "How?"

Lee continued for his father, "The baby that you thought had died wasn't yours. Roslin had Hera taken from the ship and given to someone else. She's down on New Caprica."

"Why?" asked Sharon weakly, but with a bite of anger behind her words.

"I don't know for sure," replied Lee.

"I want her back," said Sharon, her words stronger. "Now. How could she do this?"

Adama stood up abruptly and paced briefly around the room, "I don't know why. This happened on my ship, under my command and I apologise for the pain you must both have felt at thinking you had lost your child. I made a mistake to trust Roslin and I fully intend to make up for that mistake."

Sharon was clearly upset. Karl placed an arm around her shoulder and pulled her into a hug just before the tears started flowing. Lee looked down at Lena and Joseph who had both gone quiet and placed a kiss on top of their heads, knowing how lucky he was.

Kara stood back and looked up at the wall, her hands on her hips she appraised the work she had already done. The mural was nearly finished and she was covered in flecks of paint from head to foot. She was only wearing a shirt and shorts despite the cold weather outside and tucked into the back of her shorts was the gun she had taken the previous night.

It had been far too many years since she had painted, but it was talent she had never forgotten.

"So this is Roslin's new idea for a school," came a gravelly voice from behind making Kara spin round suddenly, seeing Phelan standing in the entrance.

"What do _you_ want?" she asked with distain.

"I wanted to come face to face again with the woman who took out one of my best men."

"Well now you've seen me, I suggest you turn around and walk out of that door."

"Do you really believe that the military can stop my operation?"

Kara smiled dangerously and swept out the gun she was carrying in her shorts and aimed it directly at Phelan's chest. "Maybe not, but shooting you might make me feel better about it."

Phelan seemed unfazed, "It's the end of the worlds; no matter what you do there will always be a black market and someone pulling the strings, someone who will do the immoral to keep the fleet going, You're not going to pull that trigger, you're not like me."

"For someone who would go to the trouble of coming here to threaten me, you really didn't do your research first. If you had, you would know I'm not a person who would think twice about taking you out." She didn't let him answer; instead she aimed the gun suddenly downwards and fired two rounds directly into both of his knee caps. Unemotionally she walked over to the man who was writhing in agony on the floor. Leaning down she said, "But then I never said I was going to kill you, now, go near my family again and I ensure you two shattered knee caps will be the least of your worries."

"You can't stop the market," spluttered Phelan in obvious pain.

Kara straightened back up and began walking towards to the exit before turning back, "you're wrong. I could stop it, but you're right, it is needed. What _will_ stop are your immoral practices and the military will step in if you don't." She exited quickly and walked down to the medical tent. Cottle was not pleased to hear that there was a seriously injured man up at the school who would most likely need extensive knee surgery. He grumbled as he smoked his cigarette and called for his staff to make their way to the school.

It was late afternoon when she saw the raptor descend to the planet. She had spent another few hours painting after cleaning up the mess Phelan had left behind. Apparently he would recover, but Cottle wasn't sure how long it would take before he ever walked again.

Kara shielded her face as the raptor's thrusters sent dust and sand up into the air. The door hinged open and Adama stepped out looking displeased. Kara hadn't expected him to come down and deal with Roslin himself.

"Sir," she said and saluted, a little weary that she was in trouble herself.

"At ease Major," replied Adama gruffly. "I hear you've been busy during your down time. I had a very angry phone call from Cottle asking for a medical transport. Tell me, does the shooting of a black market leader link to the throttle marks around Lee's neck, Hera or both?"

"Just to Lee, you'll have my report by the end of tomorrow."

"I look forward to hearing your explanation," said Adama without much conviction. "Now take me to Hera."

"What are you going to do?"

"You leave that to me."

Kara guided Adama across to the school tent, staying completely silent as they walked. Roslin was shocked when she saw them. As it was late afternoon the majority of the children had already gone home, but Hera was clearly laid out in her crib in the corner and Maya was standing next to Roslin.

"Bill, to what do I owe this pleasure?" said the former President.

"This is not a social visit Laura."

Roslin's face seemed to harden as if she suddenly knew why he was there, "how can I help?"

"I've come to take Hera back to her rightful parents."

"What?"

"Why Laura, why did you do it?"

"To protect her," confessed Roslin. Kara wanted to intervene and shout at her, but she stayed silent, watching the exchange.

"It wasn't your decision to make, Sharon was a prisoner on my ship and you used my doctor to fake her death."

"What's going on?" asked Maya who was still standing by Roslin's side. "Laura?"

"Isis isn't your child," replied Kara cruelly, considering the poor woman to have been in on the whole plan.

"Of course she is, I adopted her," said the woman obviously distressed. "Laura?"

"Yes you did," replied Roslin sweetly, attempting to diffuse the situation.

"Oh my gods, you didn't tell her did you?" said Kara to Roslin and then turned to Maya, "what did she tell you about the adoption?"

"Major," warned Roslin.

"I want to hear this," said Adama sternly.

Maya didn't know who to address, "just that an officer on board the Galactica couldn't look after the child and wanted to give it up for adoption."

"Son-of-a-bitch," exclaimed Kara and turned away, kicking at the dirt under her feet.

It was Adama's turn to warn her, "Major."

"Who is she really?" asked Maya weakly.

Despite Roslin's pleading look, Adama faced Maya and told her the truth, "she's half cylon and the parents did not want to give her up, they were told she was dead."

Maya seemed too shocked to speak, she stumbled back until she was sitting in the nearest chair, her head in her hands. Kara felt sorry for the woman, she too had been duped by Roslin and now she had found out that the child she had come to love was half cylon. To Sharon and Karl her lineage didn't matter, but it obviously meant something to Maya. No-one spoke for a few minutes until Roslin finally broke the silence.

"What are you going to do?" she asked facing Adama.

Adama didn't have time to answer as Maya responded first, "Take her away."

No-one moved, shocked that Maya was giving up so quickly on her child. Kara had expected her to still refuse to hand Hera over. After a few silent minutes Maya stood up, wiped away her tears and walked over to the crib.

"Hello Isis," she cooed. "I'm not even sure that is your real name. I love you very much never forget that," she said, the tears flowing again as she kissed the top of Hera's head. She then walked over to Kara and handed her over. "I think she always knew, she never seemed settled, like there was something missing. Do you think they'll let me still see her?"

"Of course," replied Kara even though she didn't really know the answer. She didn't say anything else as she exited the tent holding Hera in her arms. She crossed the compound and went straight to the raptor, sitting down in the nearest chair.

Racetrack turned round from her seat at the front, "hate to point this out Starbuck but that isn't your child."

"Shut it Racetrack," replied Kara and settled Hera down in her lap.

Adama soon entered the raptor after her and silently they sat as the ship took off and headed for the Galactica. It was only a short journey, but Hera was not as good a passenger as Lena and Joseph. She got fidgety and started crying. Kara had just managed to calm her down as the raptor landed and she was finally calm as the ship was towed onto the Galactica's hangar deck.

As the hatch opened she saw Sharon and Karl standing together arm in arm with Lee standing next to them holding Lena and Joseph. Sharon ran up immediately to the raptor as Kara exited the hatch and carefully stepped off the wing. She handed Hera over straight away to her, stepping back as mother and daughter embraced.

"Hello my Hera," she cooed then looked up at Kara and said "thank you," before walking over to Karl.

As the family reunited Kara glanced over briefly towards Lee as he held their children. Walking over she tickled the bottom of her children's feet, smiling as they giggled.

"Are you okay?" asked Lee.

"Yeah," she replied, her attention still focused on Lena and Joseph.

"Are you going back to the planet?"

"I have to, there's still some work to do if Roslin still wants it done. Will you bring the kids down tomorrow morning?"

"Of course, now that Phelan is currently undergoing surgery in lifestation."

Kara smiled, "come on let's find these kiddies some food before I have to go back."

Kara returned to New Caprica early that evening after feeding Lena and Joseph with Lee. She had worked late into the night finishing the mural before finally collapsing into bed. Despite putting Phelan into lifestation, she still slept with her gun under her pillow. Fortunately no-one came for her and she slept soundly until the morning.

Despite what had happened the day before, Roslin came to the new school with a selection of other parents and some of her students. She acted as if nothing had happened, smiling and talking sweetly. As promised Lee had brought down Lena and Joseph and they watched together as Kara unveiled the mural. She stepped back as everyone went and had a look, in awe of the beautiful painting.

"It looks amazing Kara," said Lee. "Is that Caprica?"

"Yep."

He instantly recognised the view she had painted, it was spot out beyond the mountains beyond Caprica City and Delphi where they, Zak and a few others had spent a vacation many years ago. She had captured the beauty of the waterfall and cascading hills. Lee remembered that vacation as if it had happened yesterday. It was the few weeks when he realised his feelings for Kara had gone way beyond fancy. He wondered why she had chosen that particular view, a thought that continued to preoccupy his mind as he looked on at the mural with Kara standing at his side, their children in his arms.


	36. When I fell in Love with You

Chapter 35

Her muscles were straining and sweat was pouring from her brow as Kara lifted the weights bar above her head over and over. Karl stood above her as a guide, ready to grab the bar in case her muscles gave out suddenly. Despite her protesting body, Kara was determined to continue until she could no longer lift her arms.

Even though she was now stationed on the Pegasus, she still preferred to travel to the Galactica's gym, mainly because Karl was there to help her train. She had also spent the majority of the morning with Adama discussing the future of the two Battlestars. Apparently many of the crew members wanted to transfer down to New Caprica and Adama was concerned how the two ships would run with such a depleted crew. They had decided that it would be too risky to allow them to leave, especially due to the edginess of the Pegasus crew since Cain's death.

Kara had finally been able to get some sleep most nights because Lena and Joseph were sleeping throughout the night now, which had come as a welcome relief. The nightmares had also subsided and no longer plagued her dreams every night; she woke up twice a week in a cold sweat now.

It seemed like only yesterday when her twins were born and now they had just turned nine months old. The last three months had also been a lot easier too now that Lee was back and they were sharing the care of the babies. Kara suddenly threw up the weights bar onto its metal frame and sat up quickly when she thought of him.

"Whoa, steady there," said Karl. "Why are you pushing so hard?"

Kara didn't answer, instead she grabbed a reel of tape from next to her and started strapping up her left hand.

"Kara," added Karl, trying to get through to his friend.

"I'm fine," she answered unconvincingly.

"You're clearly not. You look as if you're about ready to pummel somebody."

"Maybe I am, you volunteering?"

Karl held up his hands in surrender, "I'll pass thank you. So who _has _pissed you off or should I already know? There only seems to be one person in this fleet that can wind you up this much."

"Drop it Helo," replied Kara without much bite behind her words. She had been getting along fine with Lee in the recent months since her visit to New Caprica, but at the same time they seemed to have hit a wall and it was frustrating the frak out of her. They were currently drifting along as they always had, neither brave enough to make the first move.

After she finished taping up her left hand she moved to the right.

"You two have a lot of baggage, it takes time to get over that," continued Karl.

"I said drop it. I really don't want to talk about it, especially in here," she said motioning her head towards the group of people training at the mats in the middle of the room. Their attention was focused on each other but Kara still didn't want to risk being overheard, especially when one of those people was Dee.

"Fine, then let's go somewhere else," suggested Karl, hoping to get Kara out of the gym before she did someone an injury. But she wasn't listening to him; instead she strutted through the crowd, nudging Dee as she went.

"Watch it Starbuck," warned Dee without much conviction.

"Make me," said Kara in response as she continued to walk up to the punching bag, which she began to pummel without pause. Karl cursed from the weights area, watching as the inevitable unfolded.

"What's your problem Starbuck?" asked Dee, grabbing the other side of the punch bag to stop it from swinging. Kara threw up her hands, obviously annoyed at being stopped. Instead she threw up her leg in a perfect roundhouse kick, connecting with the side of the bag and knocking it out of Dee's hands.

Everyone in the room had stopped their exercising to watch the show, with Karl being the only one not enjoying what he was seeing.

"Unless you want to get hurt Dee, then I suggest you move out of my way," said Kara as she continued to pummel the bag like before, but she stood unmoving. "I mean it Dee."

To Karl it was if the next few seconds happened in slow motion as Kara swung hard with her fist towards the bag at the same time that Dee stepped forwards, stopping the bag from swinging again. He saw the pain wince through Kara's face immediately as the punch-bag smacked hard into Dee and knocked her to the floor.

"What the frak were you doing?" yelled Kara as she lunged towards the woman on the floor. Karl darted forward quickly, grabbing his friend around the waist and pulling her away. "Get off me Helo," she shouted, flailing her legs as he carried her out of the gym with relative ease. He didn't stop until they had travelled down the corridor and entered the officer's head.

Kara pushed herself away from him with a sharp elbow to the ribs. She walked up to the sink and started to try and rip off the tape from around her hands by using her teeth.

"Are you okay Kara?"

"Frakking fantastic."

"I saw how hard you hit that punch-bag, let me take a look."

Kara sighed and then held out her right hand, which was obviously swelling up already. Karl gently removed the rest of the tape.

"You need to have Cottle take a look at that."

"I'm sure he'll be thrilled to see me," muttered Kara.

"Care to tell me what that was all about?"

"What?"

"That thing with Dee, when did you two start hating each other?"

"We've always hated each other remember," said Kara, reminding Karl of when they had first met. For no particular reason neither had warmed to the other. It had been a mutual dislike between two completely different women.

"Yeah, but neither of you tried to knock the crap out of each other back then."

Kara shrugged, wincing as the pain swelled through her hand.

"Is this about Lee?" he added, already knowing that it was. He wasn't blind to the petty officer's glances towards the Major and the way she blushed whenever his name was mentioned. "Because he's the only person who could be responsible for making you act like a fifteen year old school girl."

"Just drop it Helo."

"No, after everything you've done for me in the last few months, do you really think I would just stand by and watch you frak everything up."

"That's what I'm good at remember."

Karl suppressed the urge to roll his eyes, sometimes he just wanted to grab Kara and strangle some sense into her. He couldn't see why everything always had to be so difficult between her and Lee. To him it was simple; they obviously loved each other so they should be with each other. A simple concept that seemed to completely elude them.

"I really don't get you two, why can't you be honest with each other?"

"Oh I dunno, perhaps because I was engaged to his brother? Or that we happened to be captured by the cylons who loved to torture us in front of each other?" snapped Kara, shocked at her own open honesty, she usually kept her mouth shut when it came to her feelings. She twisted away from the sinks before Karl could answer her rant and began walking out of the head.

"Where are you going?"

"Where do you think Helo, I'm going to piss off Cottle."

And piss him off she did. The doctor did not look happy to see her, smoking his cigarette he said gruffly as she walked through the door, "if you've come in here with another injury then you can damn well turn around and walk out of that door." Kara stopped dead and turned back around; she was about to leave when the doc called out, "get on that frakking gurney."

Kara sat herself up on the nearest bed and held her hand in her lap, "sorry doc."

Cottle looked her up and down briefly. It was evident that she had been in the gym as she was dressed in cut-off slacks and a cropped top. He took hold of her hand, examining it gently. "Care to tell me if this has anything to do with the petty officer across the room nursing a bleeding nose?"

Kara glanced over to the other side of the lifestation where Dee was sat on another bed with a bowl under her bleeding nose. "I hit the punch-bag awkwardly," she lied to the good doctor.

"Funny that, because Dualla claims she got in the way of a swinging punch-bag."

Kara glared up at Cottle, "I didn't punch her doc. If I had she would unconscious."

Cottle knew better than to push Kara any further, he motioned her over to the x-ray machine and took a number of pictures of her hand. It only took a few minutes before the x-rays were ready and hung up. After examining the images for a few moments he pointed to her middle finger, "There you go. Congratulations Major, you've fractured the neck of your third metacarpal bone."

"Frak," muttered Kara, no wonder her hand had swollen up to the size of a small balloon. "Is it serious?"

"Nothing that you haven't been through before," replied Cottle, making the hairs on the back of Kara's neck stand on end.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she said fiercely, remembering the many gurneys and doctors she had seen in her life, with the various explanations to cover the truth of her mother's actions. Kara had lost count of the number of lies that she had been made to tell.

Cottle knew about her past, but he hadn't meant to infer anything, "I was only referring to the recent fracture that I only recently treated, with my strict orders not to overexert your hand. You'll need a soft cast and to keep it elevated for a while, but it should only take a few weeks to heal." He walked away, obviously to get the necessary equipment.

"Great," muttered Kara, glaring over to the other side and noticing Dee staring right back. She wished that she had punched her in the face, broken that nose instead of just making it bleed. Kara muttered a curse as the petty officer pushed herself off her bed and walked across the room. "Dee, if you have a brain in that head of yours, then you'd be smart and walk away. I still have one fist that's working."

"I just came over to say I'm sorry."

"Forget it," replied Kara without conviction, "it was an accident, now get out of my face."

Dee shook her head briefly from side to side in defeat and walked away. Kara knew she was being overly harsh with the petty officer, but she couldn't stop her hatred towards the woman. Things had been difficult enough with Lee. They were still healing, trying to get a semblance of what they had back and Dee was getting in the way of that.

She had denied her feelings for him for years, telling herself that it was mere fancy, but ever since they first frakked she could no longer deny it. She could still remember his touch and the way he made her feel as he made love to her slowly in her rack.

He was constantly on her mind and saw him in her children's eyes every day, which was starting to really get to her. And whilst she was stuck in her own head, Lee was moving on. As far as she could tell he wasn't romantically involved with Dee, but she was certainly trying to push things in that direction. She had invited him to Cloud 9 on two occasions now, sure there were others there too, but Kara knew what Dee was really doing.

But she was too afraid to put her heart on the line.

It had been on that holiday out in the hills of Caprica when it had really started to dawn on her that there was something between them, the place that she had painted in that mural, hoping to stir his memory.

_The water was cold and fresh against her sweaty skin as she plunged headfirst into the water. She couldn't help the squeal that escaped her lips when she surfaced, pushing her hair out of her face. She could see Lee up on the rocks above and called out to him._

"_You've got to get in here its frakking fantastic!" She laughed as he made a funny face and suddenly jumped in fully dressed. ""You're supposed to take at least your shoes off you ass."_

_Lee didn't seem to listen to her and dived back under the water. Kara looked around on the surface wondering where the frak he had gone when suddenly she felt a yank on her foot and she was pulled under the water with a gasp. Her body brushed past his under the water, which was enough to cause a spark of desire to wash through her. _

_She coughed and spluttered when she finally surfaced, _"_oh you are so dead Lee Adama." He grinned at her cheekily, his bright blue eyes shining as she swooped her arm causing a massive surge of water to engulf him._

"_Frak, Kara!" he yelled in response and splashed her back. They scrambled together in the water, squealing and laughing as they both tried to get the upper hand, stopping only when Lee shouted that he'd lost a shoe. Kara looked serious for a moment at Lee's seemingly forlorn face before guffawing out loud. _

"_It's not funny," added Lee trying to be serious. _

_Kara laughed again right up into his face...too close, their eyes locked and suddenly nothing seemed funny anymore. All she wanted to do in that moment was lean forward and kiss that mouth of his, to frak him then and there in the water. She knew it was a guilty desire that was suddenly striking her, but Zak was asleep, he would never know if Lee pushed her up against a rock and devoured her._

_She pushed the thought away as soon as it came, scooping her hand and splashing more water over Lee's head. Silently she cursed to herself for becoming so mesmerised by those eyes. It was a good thing she had stopped herself because at that moment she heard a call from above. Looking up she saw Zak at the top of the rocks throwing off his t-shirt and pants and jumping into the water to join them. Kara swam up to him immediately, needing to kiss him to wash away the guilt. _

_As she pulled away from his lips Zak smiled at her, reminding her why she loved him. No-one had ever made her feel that secure before, but then again no-one could make her laugh at herself like Lee Adama._

Kara could remember that day as if it was yesterday, but it didn't stick in her mind as much as their last day together on Caprica. If only she had known then that it would be the last time she saw Lee before the day the worlds ended.

The pilots were all starting to get impatient, it was 1545 hours and their CAG was 45 minutes late for their afternoon debrief. Lee sat at the front tapping his pen against his note pad. Kara wasn't known for her punctuality, but she had never been this late before. He was very aware of the other pilots who were muttering and making comments across the room. He wouldn't rise to their cutting remarks aimed at Kara, which is exactly what they wanted. They would take advantage of any chance to expose his weakness for her and he could not let that happen.

The murmurings suddenly increased making Lee look up and turn his head towards the entrance of the room, watching as Kara strode in with her arm raised in a sling to her left shoulder, her duty blues jacket hanging open over the other. She looked decidedly pissed off, and after glancing over at him quickly, walked up to the lectern.

"Hey," she barked out, commanding silence. "Settle down."

"You're the one who's late," called out someone from behind Lee.

Kara glared over the lectern at the offending pilot making everyone turn suddenly silent, all expecting her to serve the pilot his balls on a plate, but she didn't. "I've made some adjustments to the pilot rota."

"Why?" added the brave but stupid pilot from the back of the room.

"So you're blind as well as stupid are you Cooper? Perhaps some extra shifts will help you hone those skills." Lee heard the offending pilot cursing quietly to himself.

The debriefing was short and Kara soon dismissed everyone who grumbled when they left. Lee remained behind, staying in his seat at the front. She seemed to ignore his presence, continuing to sort awkwardly through her paperwork at the lectern before turning to the pilot's roster board, slamming the eraser pad and scrubbing out her name. It was evident that she was not very happy about being grounded.

"Are you just going to sit there all day?" she said suddenly, still glaring at the board. Her harsh words hit Lee hard in the chest and he didn't think he could take any more rejection. He rose sharply from his chair and started towards the exit. He had nearly left when he turned back around wanting to speak. Kara was no longer writing on the board, merely staring at it.

"So are you going to tell me what happened or leave me guessing?" he asked softly.

"I lost a fight with a punch bag."

"Ouch, metacarpal?" he asked, knowing that it was a common fracture when boxing, which is why gloves or tape should always be worn.

"Yep, should be okay in a few weeks."

"Was it definitely a punch bag or is there someone in the fleet with a Starbuck sized shiner?"

"Why does everyone think that I must have hit someone?" she asked, sounding offended. She turned towards him looking annoyed. "Ask Helo he was there. Dee was behind the bag so it didn't swing when I hit, it was an accident."

"Dee?" exclaimed Lee quickly. He suddenly had a bad feeling about what had happened. He hadn't been blind to the Petty Officer's sudden advances towards him and she had invited him to Cloud 9 twice to have some drinks. He'd only gone along for a bit of downtime and because others were going to be there. For the majority of the evening he'd stayed away from her and concentrated on talking to the others despite Dee's many efforts to get him on his own.

A part of him wanted Kara to have hit Dee in a fit of jealousy, at least it would mean she was still interested in him, but she seemed determined to push him away. Lee didn't understand how they had drifted apart. They had been so close during the week when they had passionately made love over and over again. She had said she loved him as he was dragged away by the cylons. He had pinned for her for months when they were apart and she had embraced him like a lover when they were finally reunited. But now it seemed as if she had moved on and he was devastated.

The only other time that they he had felt so empty was the last time they had seen each other after Zak's funeral, their last day together on Caprica.

Caprica – five years earlier

It had been twenty-four hours since the funeral and subsequent wake and Kara hadn't stopped drinking. She had left after Lee had started a massive argument with his father, not wanting to witness the Adama fall apart.

The emptier the large bottle of ambrosia got the more the pain seemed to edge away. Her apartment was dancing in front of her eyes as she grabbed the paint can and flung the contents against the far wall. In the days since Zak had died she had managed to systematically destroy her entire apartment, removing every painful memory of him. All the paintings they had hung up together, the dinner table where she had betrayed him, all placed inside the bedroom where they had slept together.

At the moment all she wanted to do was paint, but her head was pounding and the room was spinning. She grabbed her bottle of aspirin and downed a few tablets, hoping they would help to take the edge off. She set about dunking various brushes into cans of paint, splashing them over the walls in various patterns, whilst swigging down gulps of ambrosia intermittently.

Whenever she would pause to look at the work, she would see the same pattern in blue and red with yellow at the centre. Each time she saw the pattern that had followed her since she was a child, she would scream out, grabbing the tin of white paint and flinging it at the wall again.

Her head was still pounding and the room was spinning more and more, she grabbed the bottle of aspirin and downed a few more, but nothing would take away the bite of guilt and pain from her. Suddenly she longed to be running somewhere far away and Zak's father's proposition of a place on the Galactica seemed more and more attractive.

"Kara?" a voice called out.

Kara spun round quickly and looked up at the front door, seeing Lee standing there looking absolutely exhausted, his eyes looking red and raw. She didn't answer him, turning back to her painting, seeing the same pattern peeking through the splatter of white. "Frak, frak, frak." She reached for her coffee table, knocking over the bottle of aspirin and grabbing the bottle of ambrosia. She started chugging down large mouthfuls.

"Hey, what are you doing?" she heard Lee yell out, running down the staircase and grabbing the bottle out of her hand.

"Frak off Lee, I didn't invite you in."

"Well I'm here and you left the front door open," he added. She was unable to focus on his face from the dizziness, knowing that she was losing control.

"Give. Me. The bottle back Lee," she demanded.

"I think you've had enough Kara, you can barely stand up straight." He was concerned for his friend, hating to see her looking so destroyed. "How much have you had?"

Kara shrugged her shoulders lazily before stumbling backwards, her butt landing on the coffee table.

"Whoa, steady there," said Lee, his voice now edged with concern.

"I'm fine," slurred Kara back, attempting in vain to stand up on her own, only succeeding when she grabbed at Lee's jacket and pulled herself up.

He didn't know what to do; he'd never seen anyone so drunk before. Paint was sprayed up the wall in various directions from where she had obviously misaimed and there were random streaks in a few colours. The rest of the place looked trashed.

"I tried to cover up the pattern but it kept coming back," slurred Kara again.

"What do you mean Kara?"

She gestured towards the wall, stumbling sideways making Lee catch her again. It was then that he noticed the bottle of aspirin on the coffee table. "What's this?" he asked, his voice slightly panicked.

"I had a headache."

"How many did you take?" he asked again, pulling on Kara's arm as she started to slump over. "Kara?" She shrugged again. "There's only four left in here, how full was it when you started taking them?"

"I brought it today, what? I told you I had a headache."

"Kara, you've taken the entire bottle, what were you thinking?"

"I had a headache!"

"Frak," he guided Kara down onto her sofa and then went about frantically looking for a phone. The apartment was in such a mess that he didn't know where to start looking. Finally he saw a cord leading to a pile of laundry and found it; he dialled quickly asking for an emergency vehicle immediately. When he hung up he ran back over to Kara again. "You're going to hospital," he said loudly.

"What? I'm fine, what the frak did you do that for?" she struggled to standing, nearly tripping over the coffee table and reached for the bottle of ambrosia.

"What are you doing?" he said angrily and removed the bottle from the table and threw it to the other side of the room hearing it smash a few moments later. Kara launched herself immediately at him, but her energy seemed to wane as soon as she reached him. "Kara? What's wrong?"

"Lee I," was the last thing she said before collapsing into his arms.

"Frak, Kara?" but he didn't get a response. Reacting quickly he lifted Kara over his shoulder and sprinted out of the apartment and down towards his car. He knew he shouldn't drive as he had also been drinking, but there was no sign of the emergency vehicle. He gently placed Kara into the front seat and then jumped over the bonnet and got in the driver's side.

It didn't take him long to drive to the hospital, screeching to a halt just outside. He lifted Kara out of her seat and ran with her into the emergency room, ignoring the rain that pelted him. He yelled out for help and then watched on helplessly as Kara was taken away by the doctors.

By the time the doctors came back he was asleep in the waiting room, a 5 o'clock shadow on his chin. It was only 0300 hours and he was already feeling the effects of a hangover. When the doctor awoke him, he asked immediately about Kara, his heart hammering nervously.

"You're friend's going to be okay, she's just in with the psychiatrist now. Depending on what he says, you can take your friend home in about an hour."

Lee nodded, and then settled back down on the visitor benches to wait for her.

Kara had been speaking to the doctor for ten minutes and already she wanted to hit him in the mouth. Her insides felt as if they had been in a viper crash and her throat was sore from where they had shoved a tube to make her vomit. She could still taste the charcoal in her mouth despite brushing her teeth three times. "How many times do I have to say it doc? I wasn't trying to kill myself."

"You took a bottle of pills with a large quantity of ambrosia young lady."

"I had a headache and I didn't realise how many I'd taken."

"I'm still going to have to put this down on your record as a suicide bid."

"Frak, please don't. I'll be frakking grounded for life and shoved off on leave. If I really was trying to kill myself would I really be worried about that? Also, if I was going to kill myself I'd do it properly and shoot myself in the head, I do own a gun for fraks sake."

The doctor seemed to think for a few moments and looked through the medical notes, "okay, I won't put it down on your fleet records, but I want you to talk to someone. You've just lost your partner; you need some time to heal."

"I'll be fine doc, I promise."

"Okay, you're friend's waiting outside, he'll take you home. I'm going to book you an appointment to see me in three days, if you don't show up then this will go on your fleet record."

They were silent for the entire journey home. Kara had sat in the car too ashamed to speak or even meet Lee's gaze and he didn't seem to want to speak to her either. Her apartment door was open when she reached home and at first she thought that someone had turned the place over, and then flashes of the previous night came back, memories of trashing the place. One of the walls was covered in random paint splodges, with nothing resembling the pattern she was convinced she kept seeing the night before.

"Would you like some coffee?" she asked at last, still hoarse from her sore throat.

"What were you thinking?" shouted Lee in response, unable to contain his anger anymore.

"I'm sorry," replied Kara weakly. She expected him to continue shouting at her but suddenly he slumped on the sofa and buried his head in his hands. A few moments later and she could see his body shaking as he started to cry. She didn't know what to say, her own eyes pooling with tears.

Kara walked over and knelt down in front of him, taking hold of his hands. When he looked up at her, his blue eyes were shining from the tears.

"I'm really sorry," she said again. "I didn't mean to."

"I've just lost my brother Kara, I can't, I can't lose you too."

Kara didn't know how to respond, no-one had ever seemed to really care about her before. She was still gripping onto his hands, their faces only inches apart, their eyes locked. He reached out and stroked the side of her face gently, another tear escaping down his cheek. Neither knew which one leant in first, but suddenly their lips met tenderly, developing into a gentle series of kisses. They pulled apart a few moments later, resting their foreheads together, shocked at what they had done. They both wanted to take it further, to continue the kiss, to release the passion and guilt entwined together on the sofa.

But then they both remembered Zak and pulled away.

"I need some sleep," said Kara and walked quickly away to her bedroom, hoping that she hadn't trashed it so much that she couldn't get into bed. She also hoped she hadn't irreparably frakked things up with Lee.

It was about 1100 hours when Kara finally woke up and dragged herself into the kitchen to make some much needed coffee. She was shocked to see Lee on the sofa just rising from his slumber. The guilt then hit her, she had kissed him. Not only that, but she had wanted more than the kiss. She pushed away her desire, telling herself that there was nothing between them, just a mere physical attraction. Then she knew what she had to do.

"Is that coffee?" he asked trying to be casual.

"I'm leaving," replied Kara.

"What do you mean?"

She felt the tears pooling, "I can't stay here Lee, seeing the same place where he died over and over again."

"Where will you go?" he asked, trying to hide his disappointment.

"Your father's offered me a place on the Galactica."

Lee was silent for a few moments, trying to bury his anger, the hurt piercing his heart. "This is frakking typical, you're taking his side?"

"I'm not taking anybody's side Lee."

"Zak had no business being in that viper."

"Lee, please. I just have to get away, start being a pilot again. You're dad's offered me the position of D-CAG, and with my record that's a really good offer."

Lee nodded, the sting of losing her was still hitting him hard, but he had to let her go, "take care of yourself Kara, I..." he didn't know what to say next, settling finally upon, "don't be a stranger okay?"

"Hey, you can't get rid of me that easily Lee Adama," she replied with a wide grin. "You've got your War College to concentrate on anyway. I'd just be a bad influence and distract you from studying."

Lee walked over to her and stroked her cheek like he had done before, for a moment she thought they were going to start kissing again, but he just placed one tender kiss to the top of her brow. "Goodbye Kara," he said, and grabbing his coat he walked to her front door, as she followed.

"This won't be the last time I see you is it?" asked Kara, suddenly panicked at the thought of never seeing him again.

"Of course not," and he really believed it. "Just promise me something?"

"Name it."

"Never scare me again like you did last night."

Kara smiled, "I promise you never to drown my sorrows in alcohol again," a difficult task, which she would endeavour to follow.

And then Lee left.

She missed him immediately and the ache of losing him flowed throughout her body. She found herself sitting down and leaning her back up against the door, trying to feel as close to him for as long as possible.

Lee sat in his car for about an hour, not wanting to leave. Hoping that if he stayed there she wouldn't leave, but he knew it was an empty hope. Finally he drove away back to his apartment, praying that today wasn't the last day that he would see Kara Thrace.


	37. The Turning Point

Chapter 36

It had been a long time since Kara had set foot upon Cloud 9. The last time had been on Colonial day nearly two years ago when she had left with Baltar. This time she wasn't wearing a dress, choosing black slacks and a silky fitted shirt. Her hair was also a lot longer now, flowing just beneath her shoulders, a length she had not kept since entering the fleet academy. Kara was usually against dressing up for a night out, preferring combats and tanks, but today felt as if more effort was needed especially because everyone else on Cloud 9 was dressed up. She'd even put on a little bit of makeup.

Racetrack and Skulls had been on duty and transported her over. During the trip they'd happened to mention that they had brought Lee over earlier. As if she could forget.

Kara couldn't remember the last time she had been allowed some proper "r & r." In the first year after the attacks she had been over to Cloud 9 a lot, concentrating on meeting random people she hoped never to meet again. The ship was just as she remembered with a wide open space that was designed to feel like the outdoors. She saw the spot where she had sprayed Lee with the garden hose, laughing and giggling like school children as they chased each other around on the grass. Kara laughed inwardly to herself at the memory; no-one could make her smile quite like Lee Adama. There was a large bar and banqueting room where they had had a few drinks before taking out some heavies. That day seemed like an eternity ago, remembering the look on Lee's face when he had seen her in that dress. She had lost count of the number of times she had wished that day had ended differently.

The main banqueting room was closed off for VIPs only, so Kara would have to make do with the other bar, which was situated in the lower decks where most of the military tended to hang out. The room was loud when she entered and a few men she didn't know turned their heads towards her in appraisal. She ignored them and scanned the room looking for a group from the Galactica. Lee had told her that he was coming to Cloud 9 with a few people, though he hadn't been specific as to whom, but Kara could guess. At first she wasn't going to join them, but then Fisk had ordered her to go after she had yawned three times during his debriefing.

Her heart almost stopped when she saw him sitting on the other side of the room, not because she had seen him, but because he was alone with _her_. Part of Kara wanted to walk over and slap him hard around the face, but the fight had gone from within her and she walked over to the bar and ordered a strong drink, it would be her only drink. The barman came over shortly afterwards with her drink, which she slurped at lazily, willing herself not to look over towards Lee. She refused to show any weakness in front of him.

Her hand was still in a soft cast, which was due to be examined the next day, so she held onto her glass with her left hand trying not to draw attention to herself.

"What's a lovely woman such as yourself doing sitting here all alone?" came a slightly slurred voice from a dishevelled looking man as he sat in the chair next to her. Kara ignored him, focusing her concentration on the drink. "Hey, I'm talking to you sweetheart."

"Frak off," she replied bluntly.

"Hey sweetheart, I was just being nice."

Kara turned towards him. He wasn't bad looking and about a year ago she would have welcomed his advances, but she was not interested in anyone at the moment, "well thanks but no thanks."

"You're beautiful," he slurred and lunged forward to put his arm around her. Kara reacted instinctively and grabbed his arm, twisted it and planted his head into the bar top. "What the frak, you crazy bitch," he yelled out as she let him go and he darted away to the other side of the room. Many faces were suddenly turned in her direction.

"What?" she barked out and sat herself back down at the bar.

A few minutes later and she felt another presence behind her. She braced herself, ready for another confrontation.

"If I had known that you'd end up sitting alone like this then I would never have let you go," said a friendly voice that Kara instantly recognised. She turned around on her bar stool and came face to face with Anders. She'd lost track of him since turning him down, hearing that he had requested and been granted a transfer to the Galactica.

"Hey Sam, do you want a drink?"

"You're not going to face plant my head into the bar are you?"

Kara smiled and motioned to the seat next to her. The barman brought him over a drink, a familiarity which made Kara guess that he was a regular.

"So how are you doing?" he asked after taking a sip.

"Great," she replied without conviction.

"And the kiddies?"

Kara smiled, "they're great, getting big now and crawling around like crazy."

"So are you going to tell me why their father's sitting over the other side of the room with Dualla when he could be here with you?"

"Why don't you go over and ask him."

"Okay, obviously a touchy subject," said Anders taking another gulp of his drink. "When you took your dogtag back, I just assumed that..."

"Well you were wrong."

They went silent, continuing to drink their drinks until Anders had finished his. "I still care about you," he said leaning towards her slightly. "If you ever want to give it another go..."

Kara turned to look at him, shocked at his proposition, "I don't think that would be very fair on you...or me."

Anders nodded, looking disappointed, "because of Lee?" Kara smiled into her drink as she took another slurp. "Listen will you do me a favour?"

She looked at him puzzled, "what?"

"Don't end up like him," he said and pointed to a man at the end of the bar. She recognised Billy who was looking exhausted and downtrodden. "He comes here all the time, just sits there and stares at his drink all night. Now there is a guy with a broken heart."

"Hmmm, no wonder, he used to go out with Dee."

"Ah," replied Anders, seeming to clue in to what was going on.

"So what about you Sammy? There must be thousands of women in the fleet who would love to shack up with a former C-Bucks star."

Anders shrugged, "no-one special."

"Aw come on, what about that other member of the resistance, urm Barolay. She liked you."

Anders laughed, "Err Kara, I think _you_ are more of her type."

Kara nearly spat out her drink, "Oh. Frak, my dradis is way off these days."

"That's what having babies will do."

That was too true. The old Starbuck would never let her emotions take control. "Go and have a good night Sam, I'll be fine."

"And leave you on your own?"

"I think I can survive. Besides I have Billy here for company."

Anders looked over at the forlorn former president's assistant and shook his head, "just do me a favour Kara, don't get into a bar fight."

Kara laughed and gestured for him to leave. He placed a kiss to the top of her head and then scampered back into the throng.

Once he had gone Kara chanced a glance across the room and saw Lee staring straight back at her. She smiled and raised her glass to say hello, but then he looked away, turning his attention back to Dee who placed a hand on his arm.

Kara had seen enough, she stood up from her barstool and walked over to Billy. She knocked her glass against his, "To hopeless cases."

Lee kept looking over towards the front entrance, hoping that Kara would changed her mind and decide to come over to Cloud 9 for some "r & r." In his opinion she couldn't get here quickly enough. He had come over under the false impression that they were going to be with a group of people, but when he had entered the bar Dee had been sitting alone.

They had casually talked for a while, but now Lee was getting impatient.

"So how come you came over alone?" he asked trying to keep the impatience out of his voice. He wanted to know the answer, but then that meant taking his eyes off the front entrance.

Dee looked down disappointed, "I thought it would be nice to spend some time alone."

Lee felt a sense of foreboding dread wash through him. "Dee," he said as kindly as possible, in fear of making her cry. "I told you last week, I'm not ready for a relationship." The tears seemed to pool in her eyes and he hated to see people crying. "Look, you're great, but it wouldn't be fair on either of us if we started something."

"Because of Starbuck?" she said hitting the nail right on the head.

"We've been through a lot together..." he began.

"You don't think I know that? Lee, I'm not blind. I know there's something between you and that you would go to her in an instant, but I'm willing to have you for as long as she lets me."

Lee couldn't get his mind round her crazy sounding words, was she seriously suggesting what he thought she was. He had to turn away from her, tempted to run away to the other side of the bar. And then he saw Kara, sitting at the bar with _him_. He stared across the room intently, focused upon the bar and the blonde who was sitting there with Anders. They seemed to be deep in conversation, glancing at each other intermittently.

"Lee, are you listening to me?" asked Dee, but he didn't turn back to her.

He carried on watching as Anders suddenly stood up and placed a kiss on top of her head before walking away and then their eyes locked. Kara's gaze could make his heart stop in an instant. She really didn't know how beautiful she was and what she did to him.

He watched on as she raised her glass. Was she seriously trying to tease him? Lee turned his gaze away quickly, knowing that if he looked at her any longer he would end up making an idiot of himself.

"What's wrong?" asked Dee sounding concerned. She placed a hand on his arm trying to be comforting. "You seem miles away."

Lee pulled his hand back, "look Dee, maybe this was a bad idea, I don't want to give you the wrong impression."

"What impression would that be?"

"That we have a chance," he dared to glance back over towards the bar, also not wanting to see the disappointment wash over Dee's face. Kara was now sitting with Billy, the two laughing away as if they were school children. "When did they become friends?" he thought, not realising that he had said it aloud.

"What?" asked Dee, who already had tears in her eyes. She looked over towards the bar watching Kara and Billy as they continued to giggle, "oh."

Lee was entranced, the envy bubbling away inside of him. He wanted her to smile and laugh with him again and only with him. He loved it when she smiled, the way it lit up her entire face. Suddenly she rose from her bar stool and grabbed at Billy's arm, dragging him to the dance floor. The poor kid nearly fell off his chair, spilling his drink in the process. Lee could partially see them through the crowd, dancing amongst a group of people to the loud music.

"_I_ didn't know they were friends," said Dee bluntly. Lee looked back round to her, seeing the annoyance in her face. He wasn't sure if she was more annoyed that Kara was here or that Billy seemed to be having a good time. "I have to go to the bathroom," she added and suddenly stormed away.

Lee wasted no time hanging around at the table. He stood up and walked over to the dance floor, but he couldn't find Kara or Billy. He cursed to himself and continued to search not caring if Dee had returned to their table.

He knocked suddenly into a sturdy shoulder when he was not looking where he was going and was about to apologise when he saw it was Anders. "Hey, have you seen Kara?" he shouted in order to be heard above the music.

"She left with Billy a minute ago."

"Right," he muttered back and stormed out towards the exit. What the frak was Kara thinking? Frakking the Vice-President was one thing, but shacking up with the former President's aid who was barely legal? Lee would be damned if he let that happen.

"To hopeless cases."

Billy seemed a little confused by Kara's introduction. "You okay?" she added.

"I'm great," he replied. "What can I do for you Captain?"

"It's Major, but just call me Starbuck or Kara," the poor former aid seemed terrified of her.

"I...I, sorry Starbuck," he stuttered shyly.

"Are you scared of me?" asked Kara with a grin. "It's okay if you are, most people seem to be."

Finally Billy forced a smile, "you're not as scary as Ellen Tigh."

Kara laughed loudly, "I think few people aren't. Oh Gods, the look on your face when she shoved her foot into your lap."

Billy laughed with her, his face finally brightening up, "I can't believe what you said to her, I swear it's the only time I have ever seen Laura actually blushing."

Kara guffawed loudly, "I can't believe she was so drunk that she mistook my lap for yours."

"The fact that you were nine months pregnant didn't give it away at all."

Perhaps Billy was less boring then she originally thought, "so are you going to sit here drowning in your sorrows all night or are you going to help keep me entertained?"

"What?"

"Come on," said Kara, suddenly leaping up and grabbing at Billy's arm. She tugged him off his stool, nearly making him fall over and dragged him to the dance floor still laughing.

It had been years since she had gone dancing in a club, but still moved easily to the rhythm. Billy on the other hand seemed to have been born with two left feet and was obviously very subconscious about it. He was also unsteady on his feet from the amount of alcohol he had consumed.

"You can tell you don't go out much," she shouted out above the music.

Billy leaned in closer to her ear, "this isn't really my scene. Do you fancy going somewhere a little more upmarket?"

"The top bar, can you get us in?"

"Of course, I still have contacts," this time it was Billy who grabbed at her arm and dragged her off the dance floor and towards the exit.

They walked quickly up to the main banqueting hall and the bouncer ushered them through without a second glance. The music here was softer and Kara instantly felt as if many eyes were upon her shabby appearance. The room was full of the surviving rich list from the Twelve Colonies, including several Quorum members. She ignored Zarek as he nodded at her in acknowledgement and continued to follow Billy to the bar.

This was where the best alcohol in the fleet was being served, but Kara had promised herself only one drink so she merely ordered herself a glass of water and one cocktail for Billy. He downed it quickly, not pausing for breath.

"Would you like another one?" she asked, shocked at his speed.

"I need it."

"She's done a real number on you hasn't she?"

"I don't know what I did wrong, everything was fine and then one day she just turned around and left me," said Billy looking forlorn. "What happened with you and Major Adama?"

Kara was a little taken aback, "nothing," which is exactly what the problem was. She motioned to the bar tender and he brought over another cocktail which Billy downed just as quickly.

In the few years that she had known him, Kara had barely said a few words to the man. To her, he was merely the President's aid, a shy man who was Dee's boyfriend and as far as she could tell they had been happy, but then after Caprica things had changed and Dee had clearly directed her affections elsewhere. Kara didn't know why this had suddenly happened, but she suspected it was because a certain somebody had been out of the way for a while. She thanked the Gods for her return before it was too late. Not that she would have blamed Lee for turning to Dee after being abandoned by her so suddenly, but she sure would have raised hell about it.

As they sat at the bar Billy talked incessantly about how much he had frakked things up with Dee, to the extent that Kara was tempted to reach over and begin strangling him. Just as he was about to rehash the same spiel over again, she abruptly interrupted,

"Listen. You didn't do anything wrong okay?" She was in utter disbelief to be giving someone else relationship advice, especially when she had a tendency to frak everything up. "You started a relationship at a really frakked up time, you'd both just lost your entire families, of course things were not going to stay the way they were."

Billy nodded into his fourth cocktail, "I guess it's the same for you and Major Adama."

"Aw Billy, if only me and Lee were that simple. I'm afraid our frakked up relationship goes back to years before the Colonies were destroyed."

"Oh, really? I mean, it's kinda obvious that you two have a lot of history. I guess that's what I lacked with Dee; there was nothing from before the end of the Worlds to keep us going."

"You're young, have some fun. Gods know I did at your age."

"I've never been into that sort of _fun_."

"And what does that mean? You don't know a frakking thing about me."

He looked suddenly sheepish, "I can understand why people are scared of you. I didn't mean it like that, all I was saying is that most people think I'm boring. Dee probably thinks Major Adama is a lot more interesting. I mean look at me, I couldn't even get up the courage to dance."

"You're alive aren't you?"

"Yeah, but..."

"But nothing, you're already doing better than the millions who were killed by the cylons."

"Do you really believe that?"

She thought for a moment, "Yeah I do."

Kara had never really feared death, which had fuelled her aggressive and sometimes insane flying. What she had always feared was being forgotten. If she had died with others she could have been just another forgotten face on the memorial wall. A few days after the attacks it had been her job to place the photographs of her entire squadron on the wall, including Galactica's former CAG, a nice guy and good triad player. It had been painful, but now she found it difficult to find their faces amongst the others. It had been ironic and sheer dumb luck that her disorderly behaviour had saved her life, and for that she thanked the Gods.

Lee had practically wandered down every single corridor on the ship, right down to some grimy looking areas in the bowels of the ship, but he hadn't been able to find her. The last place he had yet to try was the banqueting hall, which he guessed would be for people on the guest list only. He really hoped that she had managed to talk her way in, it was either that or it meant she was in one of the rooms with the former aid. This time he didn't think he could forgive her

"Are you on the VIP list sir?" asked the bouncer.

"Err, I don't think so."

"Then I'm afraid I can't let you in sir."

"Come on, I'm looking for a woman," he said hoping that he could appeal to the larger man's better nature.

"Aren't we all sir," the bouncer repeated unmoving.

Lee had sworn he would never use his father like this, "my name is Major Lee Adama..."

"I know who you are sir, but I still can't let you through."

"Can you at least tell me if my friend might be in there, she's about this high," he said motioning up to around his chin, "blonde, walks with an attitude, she was with the former President's aid."

"Billy? Yeah sure, they both came in here."

Lee felt his body relax slightly in the knowledge that Kara wasn't currently off frakking someone else. Part of him even felt ashamed that he had entertained the notion. But then he looked through the main doors into the banquet room and saw them dancing arm in arm in the middle of the dance floor.

He felt as if his heart had been ripped out and fed to a dog and walked away dejected, to where he didn't know.

Kara had to run out to the dance floor to stop Billy making a complete ass of himself. He had downed another cocktail before deciding it would be a brilliant idea to dance solo, thrashing his arms about as if he was at a rave. She had finally reached him when he grabbed for her, virtually pulling her into a hug.

"Whoa there," she said, catching him as he nearly keeled over onto the floor.

"You're great, you know that?" he slurred.

"Yep, but you're also very drunk Mr Keikeya."

"I'm fine," he said, the stink of the alcohol making Kara turn up her nose. She couldn't believe that she was surrounded by quorum members and the fleet's elite with a drunk former President's aid in her arms. From a distance, at least it might look like they were dancing, but up close told a different story especially when a few moments later Billy threw up on the floor.

"Frak, are you serious?" With her babies she was used to vomit, but from a grown adult? Many people were now looking on at them in disgust and Kara decided now would be an ideal time to leave, especially as the bouncer was coming over towards them. "Come on," she said, but Billy seemed to be having difficulty walking. She flung his arm behind her neck and supported him as if he was a wounded soldier.

She carried him out of the room listening as he slurred, "I wanna stay" repeatedly.

"You owe me one for this Keikeya," muttered Kara as they neared the hangar bay area, relieved when she saw the raptor.

"I'm gonna be sick again," groaned Billy as they walked up the wing of the raptor.

"Not on my frakking ship," shouted Racetrack and helped Kara quickly lift him off the wing and carry him to a fire bucket where he emptied the contents of his stomach.

"Nice," said Kara with a grimace. "Just when I'd forgotten how much fun r & r could be." She was helping to carry Billy back to the raptor when she saw Lee, standing on the other side of the hangar deck and looking mad as hell. "Frak."

"What was that?" asked Racetrack as she struggled to remove Billy's arm from around her neck and sat him down in one of the chairs by the entrance hatch.

Kara muttered "never mind," and then walked down the wing again, knowing that the next few minutes were not going to be pretty. Lee marched straight over and grabbed her arm, pulling her away to the side.

"Ouch, what the frak is your problem Lee?"

"You, always you," he said harshly, staring down at her, "what the frak do you think you were doing? You were all over _him_."

"Are you jealous?" she said unflinchingly, staring right back.

Lee stepped back slightly, who was he kidding? Of course he was jealous and really didn't have a clue what he was angry about. Their gaze was fixed, both too stubborn and enthralled to look away.

"Lee?" said an annoyed voice from behind them. He had to refrain from rolling his eyes, irritation washing over his face as he pulled himself away from Kara and turned around to see Dee standing there.

_When did everything get so frakking complicated_ he thought, just as an elbow barged passed him. "Kara," he shouted out as she strode quickly over the raptor. "Kara wait."

She was mad as hell, shouting over her shoulder, "If you know what's good for you Lee, you'd stay away."

"Kara," he said again and grabbed at her arm, but this time she spun around and pushed him hard in the chest sending him backwards a few paces.

"Just stay, away, Lee," she said slightly softer and turned, stepping up and into the raptor.

"What? So you're going back with _him_?" Lee said gesturing to the now slumped over Billy.

"No Lee, I'm going back to put _our _kids to bed," she said as the raptor hatch closed shut leaving a shocked and sheepish looking Lee behind on the deck.

He stood there watching the raptor as it was guided out of the hangar deck, going over and over in his mind how things had gone so badly wrong. Was Kara jealous too? Is that what her rant had meant? It was a hope that he was determined to hold onto. Turning he saw Dee still standing there, sighing deeply and knowing what he had to do and regardless of whether she cried, he strode over to her to lay it on the line.

Lena and Joseph were already asleep by the time Kara got back as it was late evening. All of the anger and jealousy bubbled out as soon as she saw her children sleeping soundly side by side, their little chests rising and falling as they breathed. She dismissed Megan and walked over to stare inside the crib.

"Hey there," she said with a smile, still amazed at the complete and unconditional devotion she felt towards them. "I bet you're both having nice dreams huh?"

She lifted down the side of the cot and knelt down beside them stroking the tops of their heads and then placing a kiss to the bottom of Joseph's foot making him wriggle slightly. "Just as a heads up, I should let you know that your parents are really screwed up, and will probably embarrass you constantly as you grow up, so I apologise in advance."

She watched them until they went into a deep sleep and then walked into the main room and sat down on her small sofa. She cupped her face into her hands and sighed. It wasn't meant to have been this way. Of all the times Kara had imagined Lee returning to her, this had not been part of her dreams.

She felt his presence approaching before he pushed open the hatch. She looked up from her hands and turned towards him looking contrite.

"Where's Billy?" he asked calmly.

"I ordered Racetrack to drop him outside Roslin's tent," replied Kara and stood up from the sofa, if he was going to shout she would rather not be sitting down.

"I'm sure she will be thrilled."

"Well I'm not the one who made him down drink after drink."

"You didn't stop him either."

Kara sighed, "he's an adult Lee, I think he can take care of himself," she said, refraining from shouting so as not to wake the babies.

"Evidently not," replied Lee, also keeping his voice to a strong whisper, stepping closer to Kara as they continued to argue.

"It's not my fault he was dumped and wanted to drown in his sorrows."

"And I suppose it's mine is it?" asked Lee, knowing what Kara was insinuating.

"Doesn't take a genius to see what Dee wants," they were now nearly nose to nose, their faces focused on each other.

"And what do _you _want?" he added, looking down at her mouth with sudden desire.

Kara didn't hesitate, reaching out her uncast hand behind his head and pulling his mouth down to meet hers. Lee wasted no time in reaching up, entangling his hands into her hair, prolonging the kiss. They wanted to hold onto the moment they had both dreamed about for so long, the pent up desire burning inside them. Neither had felt the tender touch of another since their last time together on that raptor nearly two years ago. Before the cylons had taken them.

The sexual frustration defeated their restraint within seconds. Without breaking their sequence of kisses Lee quickly ripped open Kara's shirt, neither caring as one button popped off and rolled across the floor. He reached up and caressed the black lace bra underneath, a garment she had once won in a triad game, as she pulled Lee's shirt over his head, not even bothering to undo the buttons.

She pushed him backwards as forcefully as she had done on Cloud 9, only this time he landed on the sofa and Kara seductively straddled him. He kissed her chest between her breasts making her moan softly. Gods he loved that sound.

Lee couldn't contain himself any longer. He lifted Kara up off his lap and turned them so that she was lying with her back and he was comfortably ensconced between her legs. They barely paused for breath as they continued to kiss and caress despite the uncomfortable smallness of the sofa.

She moaned again as he stroked his hand softly down her chest and across her belly, making short work of the fastening to her slacks, ripping them off almost desperately as she raised her butt.

They couldn't wait, needing to feel each other now.

They continued to kiss as Kara reached down and ripped open Lee's slacks, pulling them down enough to release him from the confines of his briefs. They were more than ready, both desperate to feel the release within each other. But their tongues met in a soft caress, no longer rushing as Kara settled down on her back, wanting him to make love to her.

And then suddenly it felt wrong, as much as the frustration clawed at their bodies, neither of them wanted to rush this. Lee scooped his hands behind Kara's back and lifted her back up. He stroked a hair behind her ear and softly placed a kiss to her lips, their tongues gently meeting in the middle.

The sound of a baby wailing sounded from the adjoining room.

They remained nose to nose for a moment until reluctantly Kara pulled herself away and walked to their children. "Hey there little man," she said and lifted the distressed Joseph out of the crib; unusually he hadn't awoken his sister. Bouncing him slightly on her shoulder she walked back to the main room where Lee was now standing and doing up is slacks. "Our timing sucks huh?" she said, knowing that tonight was not the right time for them. They both knew they needed to take things slowly or they would frak it up.

"I should go," said Lee sounding a little disappointed. Joseph looked like he was not going to settle down anytime soon and he would just be in the way.

"You can stay if you want."

Lee walked over and placed a kiss on top of her head before stroking a hand down her face. "I wish I could, but it would be wrong tonight. Besides, I think I need some serious alone time beneath a very cold shower," he joked.

Kara flushed slightly and then watched as Lee grabbed his shirt and exited the room, closing the hatch behind him.

"You couldn't wait thirty minutes huh?" she said giving Joseph a hug who giggled, his blue eyes locking with hers. "Nah, you were right kiddo."

As good as a night of wild frakking would have been, it would have felt amazing, but it would have been wrong. Smiling Kara bounced Joseph gently over her shoulder, willing him into a slumber, feeling as if a huge weight had been lifted off her chest.

She knew her and Lee would be okay.


	38. A Glimpse of the Future Part Six

**Sorry this chapter is a little late, but hurrah to me for starting my new job and finally qualifying. Only downer is that the new job is keeping me very busy at the moment, but I shall try and keep up the regular (ish) posting **

Chapter 37

There was a large gathering in the cargo area as the marines were debriefed on their duties for the day. In the middle of the large room still stood the ship, which was surrounded by computer experts who were all trying to hook up their computers. So far they had had no success. The problems were that firstly, they couldn't get the power in the raptor to switch on and secondly, the computer systems were completely incompatible with anything they had. It was incredibly frustrating to have so much technology at their fingertips without being able to harness it.

Swanson was leading the team that was attempting to hot wire into the alien systems without success. In another meeting, the powers-that-be had agreed that now was the time to get their guests involved. They would be brought up two at a time to work on repairing the ship and would be constantly flanked by three marines each. Further marines would also stand guard around the room. They knew it was risky to allow their guests to use potentially dangerous equipment, but without them they would probably never get it to work.

Brunette and Blue Eyes were the first to be brought up with Ford and three other guards escorting them. They both gazed around the large room as they were brought inside before fixing their eyes on the ship. Brunette whispered something to Blue Eyes and he nodded in response.

Swanson walked up excitedly to the guests and ushered them over to the ship enthusiastically. A translation computer had been set up in front of the ship so that he could talk to them. Others had also been set up around the room.

"Thank you for coming up here," he said with a keen grin and shook their hands. He didn't seem to care about the strange glances they gave back at him as the machine translated his words.

"We didn't really have a choice," replied Brunette sharply.

"I'm sorry?" asked Swanson innocently.

"We didn't ask to be brought up here," added Brunette. "Like always, you lot just came into our rooms and took us away without telling us anything."

"Oh, right, well err..."

"That's enough, Lieutenant," said Blue Eyes stepping in, making Brunette look away. He then turned his attention back to Swanson, "what can we help you with? You have us all dressed up here so I'm guessing you want us to help you with something." Before being brought up to the cargo area, Brunette and Blue Eyes had been given some of the onsite engineer's overalls, which were all-in-one and dark blue with a zip down the middle.

As soon as the translation had finished Swanson smiled, "we seem to be having a bit of trouble talking to your ship."

"Well that would be because we locked down the computer."

Swanson nodded, "Right, I figured as much. Could you unlock it?"

"Not until you tell me why."

Ford stepped in, aware that their guests had been kept in the dark since the last meeting. "We want to try and get in contact with your people."

Blue Eyes stared at him for a moment before answering, "so you believe us now?"

"Our caution has never really been about whether or not we believe you, but if we can trust you. You wouldn't be up here if we still considered you to be an imminent threat."

"And the dozens of armed guards?"

"We're not completely naive," said Ford with a smile. "You have technology we cannot even begin to comprehend, which our own computers cannot decipher, so understand our caution."

Blue Eyes nodded and then turned to Brunette, "are you okay with this or do you want me to look at the raptor?"

"I can look after my own bird sir," she replied sharply.

Blue Eyes looked at her with disapproval, "then assess the damage she took in the crash and get back to me."

Ford watched as Brunette saluted sharply. She hesitated slightly and then walked over to the ship flanked by her marine guards. "What the frak have you done to my bird?" she exclaimed a few minutes later, her hands on her hips.

"You _were_ in a crash, remember?" said one of the other engineers.

"Yeah, but it didn't look this bad before you stripped it apart," she ranted, not caring that the computer was having difficulty keeping up. "The safety panel is missing underneath, which is pretty much suicidal if you don't know what you're doing, there are wires going everywhere inside, and why the frak did someone attach wires to the soap dispenser? Some frakker has also readjusted my chair; it took me weeks to get that thing just right."

She soon had the other engineers running around after her, pulling out the superfluous wires whilst she made comments about everything they did. Ford watched on slightly amused, this was the most he had seen Brunette interact with someone since her capture. She was evidently quite a feisty woman, not that different from Blondie. He wondered if all of the women from the "Twelve Colonies" were as strong minded. If they were, it could make things very interesting. He liked that sort of woman; it was what he like so much about Caroline.

A few hours later and Blue Eyes was busy assisting Swanson, explaining what each individual piece of equipment was and what it was for. Ford walked over as they reached Blondie's table.

"So this is your wife's property?" asked Swanson as eager as ever.

"Yeah, she always likes to be over prepared."

"She was carrying three guns, why did she need the knife?" asked Ford stepping in.

"Sometimes you run out of bullets," answered Blue Eyes with a small smile.

"Right, so this clothing she was wearing looks to be a bullet-proof type of vest. Looks like she was heading into some action, care to tell us about that?"

"Not really."

"Your wife told me before that your ship had made an emergency jump which brought you here, what was going on?" asked Ford persistently.

"I thought you were done with the endless questions?"

Ford picked up one of the handguns from the table, knowing there were no bullets in the chamber, examining it thoughtfully before putting it down again. "It just concerns me that's all. So can you unlock the computer for us?"

Blue Eyes seemed to think for a moment and then picked up an object from his wife's table before walking over to the ship. He stepped inside, closely followed by Swanson and Ford, with the marines standing just outside. He walked up to what seemed to be the main computer systems for the ship and slotted in the object before flipping a sequence of switches.

It took only seconds for the consol to power up and then the ship emitted a low humming sound as it came to life.

Ford laughed briefly, "I don't know how many times I've stared at that object and wondered what it was for."

"You would never have broken the code even you had known," replied Blue Eyes. He sat in the chair in front of the consol and began flipping more switches until a screen lit up, which reminded Ford of their own radar system.

"What is that?" asked Swanson.

"Dradis," replied Blue Eyes. "This should tell us if any of our ships are in the vicinity or any enemy ships."

"There's nothing coming up."

"No, because we're on the surface of a planet with too much interference. It was a long shot anyway." Brunette then entered the ship and walked over to the front seats. After watching their guests being locked up for weeks on end it was strange to see them taking control, interacting with each other normally. "Racetrack, how is she doing?" asked Blue Eyes.

"They've frakked it up sir. I'm not sure if I can get her off the ground again."

"Well, keep trying, or we'll never get back to the Pegasus."

"Yes sir, but I need more help. See if you can get Skulls up here." Brunette then walked away out of the ship and down the wing. She then used a board to slide in underneath the ship.

Blue Eyes continued to fiddle with a number of switches. A few moments later and Ford could hear a crackling sound. He watched as Blue Eyes grabbed what looked to be a headset and spoke into the microphone, "Pegasus this Major Adama do you copy? Pegasus if you're out there please respond." But there was no response.

Swanson felt the disappointment wash over him, "so they're not out there?"

"Not necessarily, this only has a limited range. If you want my opinion, you're going to have to fly the raptor out there to get a signal."

The ship went quiet for a few moments before Ford spoke, "so you're suggesting we simply fly a ship out of our atmosphere and into space. I hate to inform you but I'm afraid we're running low on astronauts."

"Well you have six people in your custody who all know how to fly her."

Ford laughed slightly, "right. I said we trusted you, but letting you loose with a ship, I don't think so."

"Then we might never communicate with our people."

Ford stood back in silence as Blue Eyes continued to try and get the communication systems up and running. After a few minutes he left the scientist with Blue Eyes and the marine guards and strolled out of the ship to the cargo area.

He knew that another conversation was needed with his superiors.

A few hours later and Ford found Caroline in her usual place, sitting observing their guests. She seemed to spend hours in her armchair just watching, even if all they were doing was sleeping. Brunette and Blue Eyes had been allowed to stay with the ship for several hours before being taken back to their rooms.

"How are they doing?" asked Ford.

Caroline looked up to him from her chair and smiled, "fine, Brunette is sleeping soundly. Looks like the little trip down to the cargo bay did her some good."

"She did a lot of work. I think the ship belongs to her."

Caroline nodded, "her and Leg's names were on the side."

"Blue Eyes kindly informed me that all of them know how to fly the ship and to take it out beyond the Earth's atmosphere is the only way they would be able to communicate with their people," he said expecting her to be shocked at the suggestion.

"Perhaps it is," said Caroline.

As much as Ford trusted and wanted to believe their guests' story, it was so incredible and he had no idea what was really going on in their minds. Caroline on the other hand seemed to trust them without question or reservation. "I'm guessing you think we can trust them to go out in a ship?"

"With an escort of course. If you'd allow a few of them to take the ship with a marine contingent they wouldn't want anything to happen to the comrades still kept back here, so they'd behave."

Ford didn't respond, he hoped as much. Looking on inside the rooms he saw through one of the windows the outline of two persons in Blondie's bed. "Are those two at it again?" he asked.

"Yep, hence why the lights have been dimmed down."

"Do the higher ups know about this yet?"

"No, why?" asked Caroline unsure what Ford was getting at.

"You're a scientist and a doctor Carrie, and surely well aware of the repercussions of allowing two people to have sex."

His use of the word "sex" made the hairs on the Caroline's am stand on end, "They're adults and know what they're doing."

"Or does part of you hope that a certain something will happen?" he was nearly whispering into her ear now, but his words did not seem playful anymore and they irritated her.

"What the frak are you insinuating?"

"_Frak? _Shit, you're even beginning to talk like them now Carrie, what's the matter with you?"

"What?" she replied with a shrug. "It sounds politer I guess."

"How long have we been friends Carrie? I know when something's wrong, you sit here day after day just watching."

"I'm fine," she replied unconvincingly. Ford looked at her intently, in a way that made her feel as if he could read her mind. "I've been thinking a lot that's all."

"About?"

"About what I want to do with my life."

"What do you mean, _what to with my life_? You're what, 28? You've already reached the top of your career and you're a qualified doctor and scientist. What more could you possibly want?"

"To be out there," she said gesturing to nothing in particular.

Ford chuckled slightly, but not happily, "you want to go out into space?"

"Their lives out there seem so exciting, living on other worlds, seeing other stars."

"Their worlds were completely destroyed, everyone they had ever loved were killed, and they're living and working just to survive."

Carrie felt the guilt hit her, "you think I don't know that? Perhaps "exciting" isn't the word they would use, but for me, it's where I want to be."

Ford walked back up to the glass partitions, looking in at their guests. Blue Eyes and Blondie seemed to have settled down and were lying entwined in their bed even though it was only early evening.

What he couldn't say to Caroline was that he desired to be far away too. Before he had come to see her, he had been in a meeting with his superiors. He had put forward Blue Eye's proposition.

It had been accepted in part.

Ford had volunteered immediately for the mission, whatever it would end up being. They hadn't arranged all of the details yet, merely giving him the nod that he would be on board that ship when it was launched. They were already considering having one of the guests escort them into the atmosphere, that guest being Brunette. She seemed the least volatile out of the six. Ford wasn't quite so convinced, sometimes the silent ones could suddenly flip, but he hadn't voiced this opinion.

"What are you thinking?" asked Caroline suddenly behind him. He turned and met her gaze, a little too close to be safe.

"Just thinking about the future."

His attention was suddenly drawn back to the rooms as Blondie shuffled out of the bed pulling a blanket around her as she went. Despite covering up her modesty she then dropped the towel when she reached the shower cubicle and turned on the water. A few moments later Blue Eyes joined her. They stood flush against each other face to face, hiding each other as the water cascaded across them, their foreheads together.

Ford had to walk away from the windows, feeling as if he was invading their privacy and also seething with jealousy at their happiness. He wondered how they had met, what journey they had gone through together to reach this point. He selfishly hoped that the path hadn't been completely smooth, that way people like him had a hope of finding someone so special.

"Look Carrie, there's..." he began but was interrupted by Swanson as he came storming into the room.

"We've got a problem," he said loudly and then did a double take at the windows. "_Hello_, who put those two together?" he said with smile, "I need to come up here more often."

"What's the problem?" asked Ford guiding Swanson away from the windows. It took him a moment to draw his attention back.

"Well, as you know our "guests" didn't have a very private landing."

Ford and Caroline both nodded in agreement. Unfortunately the ship had appeared on radar over the English Channel, but it didn't come into eye-shot below the cloud line until it was over London. Even more unfortunately, it had been captured by a Japanese tourist who was filming Tower Bridge. The footage had been leaked all over the internet before it could be stopped. Thousands of conspiracy theory websites had been set up with millions joining in the discussion of what the mysterious UFO was. The Government had acted quickly, locking down the footage and releasing a statement that the footage was merely a light aircraft in distress that was trying to land at Stanstead airport. But the public were not convinced.

"So what's the problem?" asked Caroline.

"The ship crashed on the edge of a forest. What we didn't know at the time was that a camera had been set up in some undergrowth to film the wildlife."

"Shit, didn't someone check the area?" exclaimed Ford, ready to kick someone's incompetent arse.

"Of course they did, but it was a fair distance away and disguised to fool animals, but the zoom on the camera was pretty good."

"What's the damage?"

"We've already locked down the person who released the footage, but with today's internet it's already spread. We've got an expert deleting as much as they can, which is just adding fuel to the speculation that the footage is legitimate."

"What can you see?"

"The ship making an impossibly hard landing, but still staying in one piece laid out on its side. Then one by one, each of our "guests" climbing out of the hatch, pretty much uninjured. If the footage had stopped then we could have got away with it, seeing as they look human."

"But..."

"But then the army turns up, followed by many people in bio-hazard suits. Fortunately the area was sealed inside big tents so all the camera can see is a big white canvas and you can't see our "guests" being taken away in a bio-hazard vehicle."

"Great, the conspiracy theorists should be going crazy right now."

"There are about three hundred of them staging a sit out in front of Westminster; they've got banners and are screaming for the Government to tell them the truth."

"Perhaps we_ should_ tell them," said Caroline and then walked away out of the room leaving Ford and Swanson staring after her.

"She's ah, tenacious." said Swanson. Ford didn't respond as he carried on watching the exit where Caroline had stormed away. "Is she seeing anyone by any chance?"

That grabbed Ford's attention, "what? Um, yeah I think she is, very serious, been with him for years." It scared him how easy the lies came out.

"Too bad. Anyway, I've got to get back to the chiefs. They want some more theories on spaceflight, the likelihoods of getting the ship up into space blah blah blah."

"Is that within the remit of your expertise?"

"No. I'm just making educational guesses. As far as I'm concerned the real experts are behind that glass." He shrugged his shoulders, took one last glance towards the windows and then started to walk away. "They're not shy are they?" he said rhetorically and then left.

Ford couldn't believe his jealousy at hearing another man voice his interest in Caroline. He'd liked her since he met her, but had never stomached the courage to do anything about it. What if he went away to the stars and never saw her again?

That thought stayed with him long into the night and through to the next morning.

The following day it was the turn of Blondie and Mr Robot, who had now been re-nicknamed by Caroline to Rugby due to his love for the sport. They were brought up to the cargo area to work on the ship. Even though they now knew their guest's real names and called them such to their face, they still continued to use the nicknames when out of earshot.

The marine guards had been given a lecture to be extra vigilant around the female, reminding them of her escape bid a few weeks earlier.

It was clear when they were brought to the cargo area that Blondie and Rugby were good friends. They had greeted each other warmly and laughed at each other's overalls. When they reached the translation computers Ford greeted them. All night, his last conversation with Caroline had played over and over in his head and he was tired and cranky.

"There are many guards in here," he said, addressing Blondie. "And just so you know, I've made sure you have two extra guards just following you. One false move and you get a tranquilizer dart straight in the butt. And believe me when I say it can make you go numb for ages."

Blondie grinned, "awww thanks, I'm flattered you've gone to so much trouble just for me, really."

Ford could appreciate what Blue Eye's saw in her. Apart from obviously being attractive, she definitely had a magnet personality.

He looked on as Rugby nudged her and then asked. "What did you do Kara, or can I guess?"

Blondie grinned again, "I may have made a little escaped bid."

"A little?" interrupted Ford harshly. "You knocked someone out, took another person hostage, wreaked havoc throughout the building and let's not forget pushing me through a pane of glass."

Rugby didn't seem to be shocked by Ford's revelation, instead he chuckled slightly, "I figured when all the alarms sounded that it would have something to do with you." Blondie nudged him back and they walked over to the ship.

They set about repairing the ship straight away. Rugby concentrated on the inside of the ship, whilst Blondie went around resealing and checking the hull. The marines had stepped away slightly and grabbed a fire extinguisher when she turned on the blow torch, but her attention seemed to be totally focused on repairing the ship and not making her escape.

Ford was wandering around the room when he heard Blondie letting out what he could only imagine was a number of expletives. He walked over to her and saw her struggling with a panel. "Can I help?" he asked, but the translation computer was too far away to translate. It worked best when around the front of the ship. Ford was about to go and fetch one of them when Blondie grabbed his arm and motioned to the large panel. He grabbed hold of it and pressed down as she welded one side into place, before motioning his hands away as she welded the rest.

He then followed her as she walked back round to the front of the ship. She also seemed to be aware that the translation computer was around at the front.

"Thanks," she said without much conviction.

"You're welcome," replied Ford. "So, um, you seem a bit..." He cut himself off, not quite sure what to say. He would have liked to strike up a normal conversation, but she didn't seem in the mood for a general chat.

"What?" she asked after the machine had translated.

"Tetchy," he finished, but the computer had difficulty translating. "Sorry, I meant irritable."

"Try being locked away, kept from your own children," she said, trying to turn away from him and walk away, but he followed her doggedly. Blondie seemed to try and continue working on the ship, getting more and more frustrated as Ford tried to talk to her, to apologise.

"Will you just talk to me?" he asked again, not entirely sure why he was pursuing her so intently. He was irritable and part of him wanted to pick a fight with someone.

Blondie seemed to be trying to ignore him and walk away but the marines stopped her from going too far. "Frak," she cussed.

Impatiently Ford grabbed at her arm and pulled her towards him, she retaliated straight away landing a strong right hook to his jaw that knocked his head backwards sharply. The marines acted fast, grabbing for her and tackling her straight to the floor without a struggle.

"Hey," came a call from inside the ship and Ford turned to see Rugby coming out. Despite his foreboding presence the marines quickly blocked his path. He pointed to Ford, "you're the one who wouldn't leave her alone."

Ford conceded the point and signalled to the marines to step away from the woman who was still on the floor. Ford held out his arm and she grabbed it, rising from the floor quickly. "I apologise," he said sincerely.

"Don't worry about it," she replied and dusted herself down. Rugby seemed contented that things had calmed and went back inside the ship. Blondie also carried on working, kneeling down by a dented panel at the side. "I swear this was dented before we crashed, it should be fine."

"I don't think the powers-that-be will take you at your word on that," said Ford half-heartedly, trying to lighten the mood, whilst at the same time nursing an aching jaw.

"Well I doubt any amount of paint will fully cover up the many scorch marks, but she'll fly, trust me on that, these things are very resilient," she said with a smile and wrapped her knuckles on the side.

"Did the marines hurt you?" asked Ford, feeling suddenly guilty.

"No, I'm built of more resilient stuff too."

"I hope we can get in contact with your ship soon, you're children are up there aren't they?"

Blondie nodded, "Lee and I always knew this might happen, but..." she shook her head as if trying to get rid of the thought, "never mind."

"Come on, let's get rid of that dent and then we'll try and paint away the scorch marks," he said as friendly as possible making Blondie laugh slightly.

"Hey, what happened to the tranquilizer shooting me in the butt threat?"

Ford smiled at the woman as she jested, "didn't want to waste a dart."

They started to work on the dent, but then Blondie went suddenly serious. "So are we going to be allowed to go home or not?" she asked with a touch of sadness.

"I hope so," was all Ford could reply.

Up above there was a galleried walkway that encircled the entire cargo area. It was above the floodlights that lit up the room, which meant it was difficult to see Caroline looking over the banister, watching. She had seen how Ford had practically wound up Blondie, deserving the right hook that she had given him. The woman had not struggled as the marines grabbed her and pinned her to the floor.

Part of her wanted to go down and slap Ford hard around the face, another part was to take hold of him and ask what was wrong and the final part of her just wanted to grab and kiss him.

Quietly Caroline backed away from the banister and walked back to watch the rest of their guests in their rooms, the solitude bringing comfort.

It was later that evening when everything seemed to calm down. The guests had feasted on a large roast dinner, which had gone down very well with all of them. Caroline was now watching as they were now relaxing and resting in their rooms, but this evening she was not alone. Relaxing in chairs next to her was Ford and Swanson, the former seeming to have cheered up a bit and the latter digging into his own helping of roast beef with Yorkshire puddings.

The higher powers were too busy arguing between themselves to care about what their guests were doing anymore, so Caroline had allowed Rugby to spend some time with his wife and Legs was allowed to visit Brunette. It was nice to see them looking happier as they ate their dinner. Afterwards Legs and Brunette sat talking at their little table, obviously friendly but nothing more.

Blue Eyes sat up at the end of the small bed with Blondie curled up in his lap. He stroked his hands through the ends of her hair as they watched the silent TV screen. Blondie didn't seem to be watching much as she doodled away on the paper Caroline had given to them weeks earlier. She looked to be drawing a sketch of her children.

Everyone's attention was suddenly drawn to a caption stating "breaking news," which flagged up on the television screen. Blue Eyes sat up more alert and tapped Blondie on the shoulder, making her drop her pencil, as they saw the blurry image of their home ship flash up on the screen.

Ford quickly dashed over to their own television set and switched it on with the sound turned up to loud. The slogan "hoax or proof" flashed up underneath a well tailored female reporter. They had missed the beginning of her spiel, listening in as the footage suddenly flashed back to the image of the ship.

"Amongst rumours and speculation, this amazing footage was captured by an amateur astronomer mere months after video footage of an unidentified aircraft flying over South East England," she said. "The image is currently being scrutinized, with some saying it is just a hoax but with others claiming this is actual irrefutable proof that there is life beyond our World."

"Shit," exclaimed Ford. He knew too well that the picture was indeed that of the ship their guests had called the Pegasus. It also meant that the ship had returned recently, perhaps it was still up there?

They watched on as did Blue Eyes and Blondie as the reporter talked through the various images that had spread like wild fire throughout the internet. Caroline wondered if the couple were thinking the same as them, whether they realised just how much their crash-landing onto the planet meant for the inhabitants of Earth. Were they familiar with life from other worlds too? Were there other aliens out there that were completely different from them? She knew that those answers would only come when their guests contacted their people.

But then what would the rest of the world do? One thing was for certain, nothing would ever be the same again.


	39. Faith

**I warn readers that there is some sensitive material in this chapter, which some may find upsetting. However, I don't like to leave things sad...**

Chapter 38

Lee awoke suddenly in his rack when his alarm buzzed above his head. The small alcove that made up the only space he could call his own, was dark from having the curtain drawn closed. He turned on the small lamp above his head and smiled immediately when he saw the numerous photographs staring down at him from above. A few months before Kara had given him a selection of photographs of Lena and Joseph and he had stuck them all up on the ceiling to his rack, this way he could see them every time he opened his eyes.

Pulling back the curtain, he reluctantly pulled himself away from the photographs and flung his legs over the side of his rack. The room was bustling with activity as the midday shift was changing places.

"You look like hell Apollo," shouted out Narcho who was only wearing a towel around his waist and drying his hair with another. He had obviously just finished the early shift and three hours straight in a flight-suit had a tendency to make a person very sweaty.

"Thanks," replied Lee, yawning widely into his hands.

"You on the late shift last night?"

"Yeah, had some problems with my viper so stayed to fix her, didn't get to bed until 8am."

"Ouch, four hours sleep. Why don't you stay in your rack for another couple of hours?"

"I wish, but there's about a mile high pile of paperwork with my name on it," replied Lee suppressing a groan. He walked to the end of the room and opened his locker, grimacing at the bags under his eyes. He had been working nights a lot lately as Kara had been doing double shifts during the day. Apparently Fisk wanted all of his pilots to go through some retraining, which she had been given the sole responsibility of managing. She was exhausted and the twins were becoming a handful, especially as they had started to grab and pull at anything they could get their little hands on.

Lee was half asleep when he walked down the Pegasus' corridors towards her quarters. The passageways were more open and vast on the Pegasus, and he found himself missing the A shaped halls of the Galactica.

He was already dreading his late night CAP that was due to start at 0000 hours, which no amount of coffee could wake him up enough for. Doing paperwork was one thing, but flying circles around a sleeping fleet could be exceptionally boring. Back on the Galactica he had looked forward to those long nights, especially as he had a tendency to sign Kara up for the same shifts. He could talk to her for hours over the comm system. But now he was stuck with the Pegasus crew, who had been drilled into staying silent whenever on CAP. Apparently Cain hadn't been fond of idle chatter.

He could hear the crying from one of the twins as he pushed open the hatch door and saw Kara busy bouncing Lena on her shoulder as she paced up and down the room, her hair in an untidy ponytail and looking exhausted. Joseph was playing contently on the floor, seemingly unaware of his sister's distressed cries.

"Everything okay?" asked Lee, smiling as Joseph reached out his arms excitedly for his daddy and then carried on playing. "What's up Little Lee?" he added softly as Kara handed over his sobbing daughter.

Kara threw him a pained look, the bags under her eyes just as heavy as his, "she was up all night, doc Phillips thinks it's a cold." She grabbed up her duty blues jacket and threw it on, not bothering to do up the buttons.

"Are you going to be okay?"

Kara flung back her loose strands of hair and grabbed a pile of files from the table. "Great," she said a little unconvincingly and then looked at her watch, "frak, Fisk is going to have my ass." Quickly she bent down and gave Joseph a kiss to the top of his head making him gurgle happily, slapping his little chubby hand into his lap. She then walked up and did the same to Lena, but only received a sniffle in response.

Kara looked on at her little girl sadly, stroking her head gently. "Get better little one," she said soothingly. Her gaze then met with Lee's, their eyes locking.

It always made Lee's heart beat slightly faster when she stood so close.

They held the gaze a little too long and he couldn't help but reach up and tuck a strand of loose hair behind her ear, stroking a finger briefly down her cheek.

"I have to go," she whispered and reluctantly pulled herself away, leaving Lee bouncing Lena gently in his arms.

He stood staring at the hatch door for a few moments and then realised that Lena had fallen asleep over his shoulder, "hey Little Lee," he cooed, not caring about the drool his daughter left on the shoulder of his duty blues.

_oooo_

It was at around 1800 hours when Kara wanted to give up and scream at the other pilots. Fisk had decided that everyone on the ship, from the marines all the way up to the senior officers, needed retraining and it was driving her mad. It was also evident that the reason Fisk was ordering this shake-up was not because he had taken the time to assess if it was really needed, but to keep everyone busy so he wouldn't have to deal with them. An approach that was completely the opposite from Cain's and it didn't command much respect.

Despite her exhaustion, it was another four hours before she was able to return to her quarters, just as Lee was prepping to start his next CAP. When she had finally finished grilling Lieutenant Sykes about his poor landings, Lee had just begun going over his check list with a deckhand. All they had managed was a nod to each other; anything more would have started the gossips talking.

With all of their time taken up with extra shifts, they had barely been alone together and it was getting harder and harder not to let her longing for him show. Kara had spent many a night dreaming about that moment of passion a few weeks before, waking up suddenly feeling nothing but desire for him, wanting him in the bed with her, but she had had to settle for satisfying herself.

"Hey Megan," she said with a yawn as she walked through the hatch.

"Alright Starbuck?" replied Megan as cheerful as ever.

"Don't you ever get tired?" asked Kara rhetorically. "How are the little ones?"

"Lena's still grouchy."

"Frak, did she cry all day?"

"No sir, she was just quiet."

Kara frowned and walked into the adjoining room after dismissing Megan. Lena and Joseph seemed to be contently asleep in their cribs. She hated missing out on putting them to bed. Letting the side down on the cribs, she gave each of her children a kiss to the top of their head. It still amazed her how much she loved them. For most of her life she had never made a secret of her resolve never to reproduce, but now she couldn't imagine life without them.

After splashing some water on her face, Kara quickly brushed her teeth before collapsing into bed and falling into a restless sleep. The nightmares had subsided in the last few months, the terrors that had haunted her now diminished. But tonight she dreamt of that cage again. Not the torture, but that moment when Lee was dragged away from her, screaming out as they pulled him away. Over and over again she saw the moment when she reached out through the bars for his hand, telling him that she loved him.

She awoke with a violent shudder, entangling the bed sheets between her legs, but at least she wasn't dripping with sweat like when she'd had her other dreams.

With one quick stroke she combed her hair back with her hand. "Get a grip," she muttered to herself and then looked at the clock to the side of the bed. It was nearly 1500 hours, which was later than she thought, having expected Lena to wake up at least every couple of hours.

The silence in the room however, was not a comfort and Kara felt a pull in her chest, telling her to get up. She pushed the sheets aside and flung her legs across the side of the bed before pushing off with a yawn and walking over to her baby's room, flipping the light switch on in the main room to provide illumination.

She could just make out the soft gurgle coming from Joseph as he stirred in his sleep. "Hey kiddo, I hope your dreams are better than mine," she cooed, tickling the bottom of his foot gently, making him wriggle slightly but continue in his deep sleep.

Smiling she turned to Lena, and then her heart stopped.

Little Lee seemed to be half awake, her body still and her breathing heavy. For a moment Kara was frozen to the spot, with no idea what to do. And then she sprung forwards, placing the back of her hand against Lena's brow.

She was burning up.

Kara wasted no time scooping her up and ran out of the quarters, holding Lena flush to her chest, not caring if she was only wearing a single tank and briefs. Even as she ran down the corridor her baby did not stir, no cries coming from being abruptly woken up.

It didn't take her long to reach lifestation and burst through the doors, ignoring the nurse who asked sweetly if she could help.

"Doc!" she yelled out at the top of her voice.

"What's the problem?" asked the nurse again, sensing something was wrong.

"Doc!"

A hatch adjoining the room opened and Dr Phillips dashed out, knowing instinctively that someone was in need of immediate medical help. "What's happened?" he yelled and crossed the room quickly to Kara.

"Something wrong," cried Kara desperately.

Phillips swiftly took the bundle from her arms and took a quick glance at her before moving quickly over to a bed. "Get the other nurses and doc Cottle, stat!" he shouted to the on-duty nurse.

"What is it, what's wrong?" cried Kara again, as she reached out for the bed, desperate to see her daughter.

"You need to step back," said Phillips without taking his attention away from Lena. He motioned to one of the nurses who had appeared and she walked towards Kara.

"You need to let the doctor do his work," she said sweetly, putting her arms out to turn Kara away, but she was shrugged off.

"No, she's _my_ daughter and I want to know what's wrong with her!" the tears were pooling in her eyes, with a few strays streaking down her cheeks.

"And the doc is trying to find that out for you, but you need to let him work."

"Please," her voice now diminished to a sob. "Please help her, she's my little girl."

"We will," said the nurse softly with a comforting smile and grabbed a blanket off the nearest bed, wrapping it around Kara's shoulders. "I'll send someone to your quarters for your son." The nurse then immediately ran back to the bed, which was now surrounded by lots of medical staff who had pulled over different items of machinery.

Kara couldn't move, could barely breathe as the medics ran around her, shouting out medical jargon. It was as if the world had suddenly gone into slow motion, each second agonising and all she wanted to do was hold her daughter and tell her it was going to be okay. But she didn't know if she would be okay and the pain was gripping at her heart.

Everyone was rushing to help Lena, the beeps coming from the heart monitor the only sign that the little girl was alive as the doctor couldn't rouse her. Phillips placed his stethoscope to her chest again and shook his head uncertainly at the nurse.

"What is it?" she whispered.

"I'm not sure," he replied quietly, continuing to work. Paediatrics was not his speciality as it was considered unnecessary when training to become a doctor on a Battlestar. "I need Cottle here."

"He's on his way," said another nurse. Phillips looked up at her; she knew that glance, it meant the little girl might not make it. "Shall I get Major Adama here too?"

Phillips nodded quickly, and then injected a needle straight into Lena's arm.

She didn't stir.

_oooo_

Lee had lost count of the number of times he had circled around the same ships. CAPs were even more boring now there were even fewer ships. Before being torn away from the Galactica he had enjoyed the playful banter that came through his headset from Kara, making him feel alive when the fleet was surrounded by so much death. When she had not been with him on CAP, he had passed the time by looking at the ships, smiling to himself as various people watched out into space, curious to see the vipers.

A voice suddenly came over his comm system as he was doing another sweep past Cloud Nine, "Apollo, this is Galactica do you copy?" It was the voice of Dee, speaking softer than normal.

_Why was the Galactica cutting in_ thought Lee, "Copy Galactica, this is Apollo, what's up?"

"Apollo, we're sending Hotdog out to take over your CAP, you're to return to the Pegasus immediately."

He could hear a slight sniff over the comm, but that didn't stop his frustration, "What? Galactica, Apollo, what the frak is going on, I'm not due in for another half an hour."

Lee then heard the voice of his father coming over through his headset and knew immediately something was wrong.

"Son, Lena's been rushed to lifestation..."

He didn't hear the rest, didn't need to. Flipping his viper end on end as if there was a raider on his ass, he punched the throttle for the Pegasus. He didn't care about his trajectory as he entered the landing pod, barely making the trap as the viper landed hard. The sweat was already pouring over his body from the fear, his stomach feeling suddenly nauseous.

It seemed to take the deckhands forever to start hauling his viper to the hangar and he was losing impatience, shouting out "Come on!" as loudly as he could into his helmet and thumping his hand sideways into the canopy. "Come on!"

At last the airlock closed behind him and the hangar deck doors opened. Immediately he threw back the canopy and jumped up in his seat to standing, ignoring the shouts from various deckhands for him to wait until they had finished towing the viper in. But he ignored them, unclasping and throwing his helmet away, he jumped over the side down to the deck, not stopping to check himself and sprinted across the room and out into the corridors. He was a fast sprinter and ignoring everyone else, didn't stop until he had reached the lifestation, barging through the double doors.

And then he stopped running, his heart pounding heavily in his chest as he took in what was happening.

Nurses were rushing around everywhere and doc Phillips shouted out various commands. He couldn't see his daughter, just the backs of various people and machinery. The rarely fast moving figure of Cottle came running through the door into the room past him and rushed over, nudging a nurse abruptly out of the way.

And then he saw Kara. Standing a few feet away, her gaze was fixed on the bed even as a nurse swept the curtain across. A blanket hung loosely over her shoulders, her hair was lank and falling out of its ponytail and tears were already drying up on her cheeks, only to be met by fresh ones.

No words needed to be said to know the pain they were both sharing. Lee walked up to her slowly, his mind still in a daze and placed a hand to her shoulder. But she continued to stare at the curtained off area as if she was in some kind of a trance.

Lee wanted answers, wanted to know what was wrong with his daughter. He shouted out to the nearest nurse as she walked into lifestation, "what's going on?"

The woman looked taken aback. "I don't know sir," she stuttered.

"Not good enough, I want to know what's happening, _now_," his voice starting to crack. The nurse rushed away and he looked over to Kara, but she stood unmoved. His voice was weak as he reached out for her hand, "Kara?"

This time she turned her head to him, her eyes red and blood shot. As soon as she saw him her face crumpled, her bottom lip trembling as she began to cry. Lee pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her, feeling her body shaking slightly as she cried, muffling the noise into his shoulder.

_oooo_

Cottle and Phillips looked at each solemnly, the latter stating, "She's forming a rash."

Cottle nodded, "we need to lock down the ship immediately, no-one is to enter lifestation. If there's an emergency then they stay here. We can't afford to let this spread."

"What about the people who have never had this? There are kids on the ship now."

"Anyone who hasn't had it needs to be confined to quarters, any sign of infection, get them here stat."

Pulling back the curtain just enough to allow them through, Cottle and Phillips stepped out into the main room leaving two nurses behind.

Kara was still in Lee's arms. He had wrapped the blanket around her and was desperately trying to keep himself together. As soon as the curtain opened his head darted up and Kara pulled away slightly.

No-one spoke for a few moments.

Kara saw the solemn look on Cottle's face and began to shake, "oh Gods."

Cottle stepped forward immediately sensing what she thought had happened, "she's alive, she's very sick but I think we got to her in good time."

The tears started to pour again, but this time with relief. No matter how much she had gone through in her life, nothing compared to the pain that echoed throughout her body, clutching at her heart like a vice. It took all of her resolve and strength not to collapse to the floor. And then she felt Lee's comforting arms holding her again. _How could he stay so strong?_

"What's wrong with Lena?" asked Lee weakly.

"I may need to run a few tests, but it looks like Tauron fever. Ordinarily it shouldn't be serious, most people will have it during their lifetime, but it can be serious for babies and adults and Lena's had a particularly bad reaction." Cottle paused as the news sunk in.

"Will she be okay?"

"The next few nights will be critical. I need to know if you've both had Tauron fever, as you know it's highly contagious."

"I had it when I was eight," said Kara softly.

"And you?" he said addressing Lee.

Lee didn't know, he didn't remember suffering from it, though he did remember Zak having it when he was only five. Lee had looked after him as his father was away, reading him stories whilst he was laid up in bed, a horrible rash spread across his face and hands, which he had tried desperately not to scratch. "I don't know," he said at last.

"I need to know, because if you haven't then you'll need to be isolated."

"I'm not leaving doc."

Cottle nodded, he had figured as much. He made a mental note to contact Adama later, who should know. The last thing he needed was another critically ill patient.

Kara pulled herself away from Lee and faced the good doctor. He had always been open and honest with her, and right now she needed to know the truth, "am I going to lose my baby girl?" she asked, straining to stop her voice from cracking.

"Not if I have anything to do with it," he replied.

Kara nodded, unable to stop the tears that kept welling up in her eyes. "Can we see her?" she asked in nearly a whisper.

Cottle nodded and motioned them over to the curtained off area. Kara and Lee quickly followed, desperate to see their daughter. What they saw shocked them. The little girl they knew so well had always so bubbly with a big grin spread across her face as she played without a care in the world. But now she was in a small incubator, laid out on her back with her head turned to the side, tubes sticking out and a ventilator inside her mouth.

"Hello sweetheart," said Kara as she stroked back her soft dark hair, which had grown longer in the last month and had started to curl. She then took her little hand in hers and sat down in a small chair that was beside the incubator.

At first Lee didn't know what to do. He feared to get any closer, an irrational fear that if he did she would be torn away from him. Pushing that thought away, he muscled up all of his inner strength and took a seat next to Kara. Her eyes were focused on the incubator, the blanket falling away from her shoulders. Lee pulled it back up gently and then she turned to him. He could see the pain in her eyes, making his stomach surge even more. Suddenly she reached out her hand and took his, squeezing it gently before turning back to their daughter together, their fingers entwined.

_oooo_

Kara and Lee kept their constant vigil next to Lena's bedside for the rest of the night and throughout the next day. Neither Cottle nor Phillips went off duty and the entire lifestation was focused completely on the small child.

The Pegasus had been locked-down with no-one allowed to leave the ship under any circumstances. The Galactica had taken over all of the CAPs and general shuttling duties to the planet. Adama had been the only person to board the Pegasus, piloting over a raptor in the early hours of the morning. He had gone straight to Kara's quarters, knowing that Joseph would be missing his parents. His grandson seemed irritable, gurgling and pointing towards Lena's crib. It was amazing how intuitive the twins were, always aware of what was going on.

Adama walked up to the doors of the lifestation, which was sealed off with two marine guards standing outside. In his arms he held Joseph, who was now sleeping soundly over his shoulder. Through the glass he could see across the room, just making out his son and Kara sitting side by side in front of an incubator, their eyes focused and their hands clasped together.

He signalled to Cottle who came over and picked up a phone just before the glass doors. Being a state-of-the-art ship, the lifestation had been designed specifically for contagion isolation, with the only means of communication into the room being through the phone system. Only in the instance of fire or another fatal hazard would the doors open to let someone out.

Adama picked up the other receiver, "how is she?"

"No better," said Cottle seriously. He was desperate for a cigarette, but wouldn't spark up until Lena was awake and crying out for her mother. "But no worse either."

Adama nodded, "this little man doesn't seem to be infected at all."

"That's good to hear. There have only been two other cases on the ship, so it looks as if we contained it in time."

"No-one will leave until we're sure," said Adama feeling Joseph stirring on his shoulder before letting out a small wail. "Hey there," said Adama with a smile and replaced the telephone receiver. He looked into Joseph's bright blue eyes as he pulled away from his shoulder.

"mwah daw da," he gurgled incoherently.

"That's right, mum and dad are behind that door. They're looking after your sister, she's poorly, but the doctors are going to make her better again."

"Mmu?"

"That's right kiddo," he said and bounced him in his arms. It still amazed him how much Joseph looked like Lee when he had been a baby, the same inquisitive look in his eyes, wanting to know and be involved in everything.

He made another glance through the glass, seeing even from a distance that Kara and Lee looked absolutely drained. He knew all too well the pain of having a child ripped away, a pain that never went away, never diminished, but that gradually over time learnt to live with and go on. There wasn't a day that went past that Adama didn't think of Zak, but he also thanked the Gods, despite being an atheist, for bringing Lee back to him twice.

"Come on Seph," he said as softly as he could into his grandson's ear and walked away down the corridor, praying silently to the Gods that Lena would be okay.

_oooo_

"No arguments," said Cottle decisively. "You've both been sitting here for nearly twenty-four hours and you," he said addressing Lee, "haven't slept in nearly forty-eight. You're not going to help your daughter by getting sick yourselves. You can use Phillips' quarters, which is just over there, anything happens and I'll come and get you straight away."

They knew once the doc's mind was made up that it was pointless to argue and reluctantly they stood up from their vigil. Kara stroked the back of Lena's hand and leant down to place a kiss to the top of her head. "Hey there, mum isn't going far away okay? I'm just going next door. If you need me I'll be here straight away. I love you." Her head was pounding as she pulled away, watching as Lee did the same and then turned to Cottle. "You won't leave her will you?" she asked.

"Either myself or Phillips will stay with her at all times," replied Cottle softly. "I promise."

Kara nodded and walked towards Phillips' quarters slowly, the blanket she had been given the day before still hanging loosely over her arms. She floor was cold under her bare feet but she didn't care, didn't notice as Lee lagged behind to talk to Cottle briefly. She was completely numb, her body on the verge of collapse.

As she entered the quarters she pushed the hatch door so it was slightly closed.

"Lords of Kobol hear my prayer," she whispered desperately, tilting her head up to the ceiling and squeezing her eyes shut, allowing a few tears to escape out. "Don't take my daughter away, she needs your help, please. Take me instead, but don't let my daughter die."

She heard the hatch door creak open suddenly and she finished her prayer in silence, wiping away at her tears. She could feel Lee's gaze burning into the back of her head and the room had gone eerily silent, neither knowing what to say. They had sat together for hours without saying a word, all of their energy focused on their daughter and now they didn't know how to break the silence.

She could sense him getting closer behind her until she could feel his breath on the back of her neck.

Gently Lee placed a hand on her shoulder and tried to say the most comforting words he could find, "it's going to be okay Kara."

She felt the fire suddenly surge within, making her spin round and push him away violently, shouting out with fierce despair, "how do you know that!"

"Kara," uttered Lee, shocked to see her lose control so dramatically, hammering away at his chest as she pushed him away.

"She's just a baby," she screamed, her voice cracking and then she buried her head into his chest, her remaining energy completely spent. Lee wrapped his arms around her tightly, shocked at her outburst. He had never seen her so distraught, it was breaking his heart and he didn't know what to do. Holding onto her, he placed a kiss softly to the top of her head. Kara pulled back slightly and looked up at him as he planted another kiss to her forehead and then to her cheek, before their lips met firmly in a small series of caresses ending in another deep embrace.

"I can't lose her Lee."

"We won't," whispered Lee. "She's strong and stubborn just like you." He stroked back her hair and placed another kiss to the top of her head.

"I should have taken her to lifestation sooner, it's my..."

"Don't," he interrupted. "Don't do that yourself Kara, its no-one's fault, no-ones, okay?"

Kara stepped back, defeated. Lee didn't understand. Her life had always been a series of mistakes, accidents. It had followed her throughout her life, plagued her every footsteps and now she had brought the curse upon her own children. As much as she tried to tell herself it wasn't her fault, she couldn't help but come back to that. She looked up at Lee, his eyes bright blue from the artificial light, gazing upon her with concern. Squeezing her eyes shut in an attempt to quell her tears she whispered, "Lords of Kobol hear my prayer..."

Lee listened intently as Kara prayed. He had known she was religious, but this was a private moment he had never seen before. Stepping in closer he closed his eyes and listened to her words, willing the Gods to listen despite his atheism.

"You need to get some sleep," whispered Lee after they had been silent for a few minutes.

"I can't," uttered Kara. She was absolutely exhausted, her body ravaged but she knew she couldn't sleep, feared to fall asleep.

Lee reached out and took Kara's hand and then pulled out a bottle of pills from his pocket and poured out one tablet into her palm, "Cottle gave me these. I used to take them after...when I first came to the Pegasus, they work really well."

Kara looked at the tablet for a moment as the desire for oblivion overcame her. Quickly she brought her hand to her mouth and swallowed the tablet whole. The effect was quick and she soon found her knees buckling from the exhaustion. Lee swept her up swiftly into his arms, her blanket draping and dragging on the floor, and carried her over to the bed, placing her down gently. Ordinarily he would have expected her to fight off such help, but she was already falling asleep. He sat on the edge of the bed watching as the tablets fully kicked in before placing a kiss to her cheek and walking across the room to pick up the phone.

After a few rings he heard the gruff voice of his father on the other end, he had obviously been asleep.

"Dad," uttered Lee, the exhaustion evident in his voice.

"Lee, has anything happened?"

"No change," he replied, his voice weakening. "Dad, I can't..."

Adama paused as he heard the muffled sniffs down the receiver, "you have to son, you're a father now and that means you have to face anything that happens to them, no matter how hard."

"How's Seph?" asked Lee, trying to pull himself together.

"Missing his sister, but he's fine. Get some sleep Lee."

Lee sniffed, "what if I lose her dad?"

There was a pause before he answered, "you can't think like that son, just be there for her."

"I know dad," he replied and then hung up the phone. Lee paused for a moment, burying his head in his hands. He had only known of his children's existence for a few months, but that was enough to have formed an unbreakable bond. It was killing him to see his daughter looking so ill.

Looking across the room he saw that Kara was still laid out on the bed and snoring gently. Lee walked over and pulled the bed covers over her before lying down on the bed next to her. As if she could sense he was there through her slumber, Kara rolled over, spreading her arm out over his chest.

It felt so right to have her lying in his arms, something he hadn't had the pleasure of since before the cylons had taken them, when they had shared Kara's rack during the short week they had been together.

Closing his eyes, Lee said softly to himself something which he had never done before, "Lords of Kobol hear my prayer..."

_oooo_

Cottle walked over slowly to the entrance of lifestation. It usually took threatening memos and bribes to get people in the fleet to come and see him for their physical checkups, but in the last two days he had had frequent visitors. The entire crew had been curious about what was going on with little Lena Adama and others just wanted to send on their best. Showboat had visited three times, each time talking to Cottle through the intercom phone. On her last visit she had deposited a teddy-bear that she had won in a triad game.

Picking up the phone he nodded his head at the woman standing on the other side of the glass, "unless this is an emergency I can't let you in." His voice was gruff and he had been coughing heavily from nicotine withdrawal. He was puzzled as to why Sarah Porter, the Gemenese Quorum representative, wanted to get in.

"I've brought with me the Priestess from the Rising Star, Eliya. If the parents will allow it, she would like to pray over the little girl."

Cottle refrained from rolling his eyes, "I seriously doubt that they will."

Another woman rounded the corner and took the handset away from the Quorum member. She was a middle-aged woman dressed in ornate robes, which reminded him of Elosha. "I would most be grateful if you could ask," she said in a kind and distinct voice.

Cottle sighed, "Hold on a moment." He walked over to Kara and Lee who were again sat in front of the incubator, clasping their hands together. Cottle whispered something in Kara's ear making her turn towards the entrance. She stared at the woman for a few moments and then nodded. The good doctor then returned to the entrance and pointed the woman to the air locked entrance.

Once inside she bowed her head and said, "thank you kindly."

"If you upset or disturb them in any way, I will have no qualms in throwing you straight back out again."

"I was under the impression that this place is quarantined."

Cottle muttered under his breath and walked away, he had a serious headache developing and he desperately needed a cigarette. He walked slowly away to Philips quarters. It was nearly 2300 hours and it was time for a shift change. He had contemplated ordering Lee and Kara to get some sleep again, but knew that this would fall on deaf ears.

Little Lee had still not shown any signs of improvement.

_oooo_

Kara had welcomed the soft mannerisms of Eliya when she had come over and asked to pray for Lena. She knew that Lee was not a believer, but he had squeezed her hand in consent. Silently the woman had stood on the other side of the incubator, closing her eyes in seeming meditation.

It was at around 0200 hours that Lee found himself drifting off slightly; dozing with his head slumped back against the small sofa that had been provided to replace the hard chairs. Kara remained awake, still holding her daughter's little hand.

"You need to wake up sweetheart," she said softly. "I know what it's like to feel so alone in your dreams, not knowing whether to stay or move on...but I'm here..." Her tears had dried up after getting a night's sleep, but now two fresh trails trickled down her cheek.

"She is a strong little girl," said Eliya with a warm smile. "And lucky to have two such loving parents."

"Yeah," said Kara, flashes of her own mother and Lee's coming to her head.

"She feels your strength, it is part of her."

Kara lifted Lena's hand slightly and placed a kiss to her palm. Part of her wanted to scream at the priestess, ask why the Gods had done this to an innocent child.

"When was the last time you went to the temple child?" Kara looked at the woman suddenly. "I know you have faith and that you pray, but when was the last time you practised that faith?"

Kara thought back to the last time she had entered the temple in Caprica City, it had been two days after she had found out about her mother's death, having travelled back from the Triton. Her mother had been dead a few days before someone had found her, all alone laid on her bed. "A long time ago," she replied.

Eliya reached out her hands and Kara didn't resist as she clutched hers firmly, "the Lords bless you my child."

Kara closed her eyes, allowing a few tears to escape as the priestess continued in her prayers, saying a blessing for her and the twins. She then began quoting parts from the Scrolls of Pythia before ending with a birthing blessing for Lena and Joseph, a ceremony that Kara had planned to do for her children, but had refrained until she had broached the subject with Lee, knowing that he was an atheist.

"Thank you," said Kara with a small smile when Eliya had finished.

"Never forget your faith Kara. You have many difficult journeys ahead, you have always known this. The time will come when you have to make a choice; there are no right or wrong answers, just different paths." She then bowed her head and went to sit calmly in a chair a few metres from the incubator, seeming to be in deep meditation. What she had said was no different to the many other priestesses and oracles before her, and it was still very frustrating the way they always seemed to speak in riddles, never giving her a full answer. What path was she supposed to take?

Kara walked back to the incubator and stroked back Lena's soft dark curls. She was looking more and more like Lee every day, her smile the only feature she had obviously inherited from her mother.

She felt the soft hand rest on her shoulder and looked round suddenly, coming face to face with Lee. He reached up and wiped away the stray tear that had flowed down her face. Slowly she raised herself onto her tiptoes and placed a long and soft kiss to his lips before sitting back down on the small sofa and continuing her vigil. Lee settled in beside her, placing an arm across her shoulders.

It was at about 0400 hours when Cottle re-emerged from his slumber, walking up to check on the incubator. He smiled slightly at the small child's parents slumped over on the sofa. Lee was sat upright with his head swung back, snoring slightly and Kara was curled up next to him, her head in his lap and a blanket draped over her. Lee's arm was laid across her protectively and Cottle could see how comfortable they seemed in each other's arms.

He continued his checks, noting the slight colouration that had returned to Lena's cheeks and said a silent prayer himself.

_oooo_

The first thing Kara became aware of was the stiffness in her neck after a mercifully dreamless sleep. She had obviously slept in an awkward position, which was sending spasm down her back. As she moved she could feel Lee's legs stirring and then remembered that she had fallen asleep in his lap.

And then a small gurgling sound came from beside her.

Suddenly springing up from the sofa, Kara and Lee darted over to the incubator just as Cottle came whizzing over. Their hearts were racing as they saw Lena kicking her little chubby legs about, her blue eyes open and alert, looking about the room with curiosity.

It took all of Kara's resolve not to burst out crying from the relief at seeing her daughter awake and letting out a small croaking wail past the ventilator. Cottle came over and placed a stethoscope to her chest, smiling with relief at the wriggling child. He detached a number of tubes and removed the ventilator making Lena cry out at the top of her lungs.

It was the most beautiful sound they had ever heard.

"Can I?" asked Kara looking up at Cottle. She desperately wanted to hold and comfort her little girl.

Cottle reached into the incubator and gently scooped up Lena into his arms before passing her over to Kara. She stopped crying the instant she was in her arms, looking up with bright blue eyes at her parents. If it wasn't for all of the tubes still attached, she would have looked as if nothing had ever been wrong.

"Hello my angel," she cooed and smiled down, unable to stop the tears pooling in her eyes. She sat down into the chair by the incubator with Lee next to her and gently rocked her daughter to sleep.

Reaching out Kara took Lee's hand into hers. Turning to him their eyes locked for a long moment before turning back to their peacefully sleeping child.


	40. Oh So Softly

Chapter 39

Their vipers rocked gently as they headed out away from the fleet in perfect formation, the wings staying barely inches apart.

The fleet was behind them with New Caprica looming to the right. There wasn't much to see up above in the orbit. The planet was nothing compared to its namesake. Neither of them had spent much time flying CAP around Caprica, but what they did remember was a beautiful sight. Kara had also had the misfortune of seeing her after the nuclear bombs had decimated the surface, causing a cloud of dust to fill the once clean atmosphere. New Caprica, on-the-other-hand was bleak, with the only temperate areas located around the equator, the rest looking like a cold and mountainous labyrinth. Baltar must have been kidding himself that they could ever make this planet their permanent home.

Kara turned her head to the side and looked on into Lee's viper, feeling her stomach lurch slightly. No-one had ever had this effect on her before. She had always been the one in control of relationships, even the completely frakked up one she'd had in college with a guy she was happy had burned on Caprica with the others. But Lee Adama could make her lose herself completely.

He turned to her and smiled.

"Think we should head back?" said Kara into her comm system, which had been set to ship-to-ship transmissions only.

"Do you think the Pegasus is missing us?" he joked.

"Somehow I doubt that."

They were only metres away, separated by the freezing vacuum of space, but they could feel each other's presence. They hadn't flown together since that wonderful moment in the nebula when they had found each other.

Suddenly through their helmets they heard the Pegasus calling, interrupting their moment by telling them they had gone beyond their CAP boundary.

"Pegasus, Starbuck, copy that," she said continuing to smile towards Lee.

"Shall we?" asked Lee, a question that Kara had continually wanted to shout at him _yes, for frak sake yes_.

"Fisk will have our ass if we don't."

"Come on, I'll race you back around the Pegasus."

Kara laughed, "Oh, you're on Apollo." She hit her thrusters hard over, spinning end on end and punching in towards home with Lee hot on her heels, goading him over the headset as she went.

They had been out on CAP for nearly the last six hours, with only one break for re-fuelling. Everyone else had pulled double shifts when Lena was sick and the two weeks after for her recovery, and they were starting to payback that time. It meant they hadn't gotten to see each other a lot as they swapped time between Joseph and Lena, the latter who was still being kept in lifestation under observation. But today Lena was finally being released and they had organised a party, so it had been an excuse to fly together, something which Fisk usually frowned upon.

When at last the six hours were up, their vipers were pulled onto the deck one after the other. As their canopy's pulled back, their attention was not on the deckhands who brought over the ladders. Their gazes were on each other, watching as they stood up in the cockpit and stepped over the side. The desire that had been building up within them throughout the CAP was burning.

"Sir?" said a female voice bringing Kara's attention back to her duties.

"What?" she asked, her tone a little harsher than the deckhand deserved.

"Sir, you need to sign off on your checklist."

"Frak," she replied and grabbed the clipboard. Her gaze flicked up towards Lee, seeing that he too had been caught by an eager deckhand. Kara quickly went about doing a brief inspection of her viper, it wasn't as if they had seen any action so there was nothing to note. She sighed as she ticked the boxes before handing back the clipboard and quickly started to dash away, seeing that Lee was already walking off through the side exit.

"Sir..," began the deckhand again.

"What?" shouted out Kara spinning back.

The deckhand seemed to shy away slightly, "you forgot your helmet sir."

Kara bounded over sheepishly and took the helmet muttering "thanks." She walked quickly across the deck, ignoring the inquisitive glances in her direction, and followed Lee's footsteps through the side exit instead of going the shortcut up the ladder.

_Dammit, why did he leave without me? _She thought getting frustrated as she turned a corner. Suddenly she felt a tug on her arm, pulling her forcefully to the side and through a doorway, but she wasn't scared, instead she was already smiling as Lee thrust her against the wall of a small storage room, their lips meeting passionately, not stopping for breath as their tongues caressed.

"Six hours," gasped Lee as he pulled away, forcing the zip on her flightsuit and pulling it down at the sides so she could free her arms. "Do you know what you do to me in six hours?"

Kara smiled mischievously as she grabbed at Lee's already unzipped flightsuit and pulled him to her. His hands stroked up her body as they kissed again, wishing that she wasn't in the flightsuit at all, but that would be going a step beyond what they had been doing for the past two weeks.

He left her lips, placing kisses along her jaw line and then to her neck making her gasp. She reached up her hands to his chest and then ripped down the sides of his flight suit, feeling her hands along his strong arms.

A sudden noise from out in the corridor pulled them apart, frozen in place they waited for the noise to dissipate, but whoever it was seemed determined to linger outside the storage room door.

"Frak," whispered Kara, sweeping back the loose strands of her hair.

They stood chest to chest, neither daring to make a move as the noises continued outside the room. Thankfully, even though the lights were on, no-one had attempted to come inside.

After a while everything went silent, indicating that whoever it was had moved on, but the moment had gone. Sense overtaking their passion.

"We should go," whispered Kara, acutely aware of Lee's proximity. "Your dad will be arriving in the next hour."

Lee nodded in disappointed understanding, leaning back in he pressed a firm kiss to her lips. As they pulled away their eyes locked, their noses brushing at the tip. "Kara..."

He had that look in his eyes, the look he had when he was about to ask something of her. But this time she wasn't going to duck and run away, holding her gaze.

Lee was trying to muscle up the strength to ask her, to ask where this was going, if it was what he hoped for. He had a whole speech planned in his head, but she had him completely tongue tied. All he could manage was, "Kara, we keep doing this...I..."

Kara swept her hair back in frustration, he was right, they had kept doing this. Ever since the kiss they had shared in doc Phillip's quarters they had continued to dart into the nearest storage closets and dark side corridors, every rare free moment they were alone together. The desire was burning at them both, eating away at their resolve.

"Kara..."

The sudden screech of the metal as the hatch wheel turned made them push apart quickly. Lee reached up and hit the light as Kara dived down into the corner behind a box. Lee however, wasn't quite so quick and the light from the corridor poured into the room.

"Sir!" squeaked the shocked young deckhand who had been assisting Kara before. "I'm sorry...I...I didn't realise you were in here." She started to back up then asked shyly, "erm, why are you in here sir?"

"Err, I was just looking for...my helmet...here it is," he said with a smile and grabbed it up off the floor, darting out and leaving the deckhand looking confused. She shook it off and stepped into the room to continue looking for the supply she needed, switching on the light only to leap back in surprise as Kara appeared suddenly from out of the corner.

Kara zipped up her flightsuit and grabbed her helmet as she started to walk out of the room, turning to the gobsmacked deckhand. "If you're expecting a lame ass excuse for why I'm in here, you're not going to get one," she said bluntly. They had been busted completely so it was pointless trying to hide that fact.

"Um, of course sir."

Kara sighed as she was about to exit, "Look, I would appreciate it if you kept this quiet."

"Of course sir," saluted the deckhand, still looking completely bemused.

"Right," said Kara unconvinced. She had marched quickly down the corridor and around the corridor before she couldn't contain herself and burst out laughing.

_oooo_

At 1600 hours Kara entered the lifestation, nodding to Philips in friendly acknowledgement. She would always be indebted to him and Cottle for helping to save her daughters' life. Lena was sitting up in her little cot, no longer attached to any machinery and looking content playing with her teddy-bears. Megan was sitting watching over her, standing when Kara came over having dressed down after her shower into slacks.

"Hi sir," she said as cheerfully as ever.

"Hey Megan, thanks for looking after her."

"No problem, I'll see you at the party." She then stood up and jaunted happily out of the room.

It had been a difficult couple of weeks. Not only had they to endure the agony of seeing their daughter looking so ill, but they'd also been banned from leaving lifestation, kept away from Joseph for fear of spreading infection. At last, eight days ago, they had been allowed to leave. Today would be the first time that the twins were allowed to be reunited. It was evident that they had missed each other deeply.

"Hey there," said Kara, smiling as Lena reached up her arms for her mother. She lifted her out and sat her down on the nearest bed. "Okay kiddo, we've got the former President of the Colonies coming over for your party, so we'd better wear one of the nice dresses she sent over last month."

Lena grinned as if she was very happy with that proposal. "Thought you'd like that," she added, holding out three dresses. "Okay, we have three choices, all pink, pink with a lot of yellow and yellow with a lot of pink."

Lena wriggled around with glee, slapping her hand on the all pink dress with a smile, "mmwah da."

It was always the pink choice. "You must get that from your father, because it sure as hell doesn't come from me," she teased.

Once dressed, Kara attached a small matching bow to the top of Lena's head, into her ever growing soft brown curls. She picked her up into her arms and bounced her on her hip just as Cottle came over and handed Lena her blanket and the teddy-bear Showboat had given to her.

"I don't want to see you back here again," he said to the little girl in the kindest voice he could manage, which was still gruff. He then addressed Kara, "can I go back to my ship now?"

Kara smiled, "thank you doc."

"I worked so hard to bring this little one into the world that I'd be damned before I lost her to illness."

Kara patted him on the arm as she left the lifestation, he would never change, which was oddly quite comforting.

_oooo_

It was only a small party, but at least the family quarters on the Pegasus were larger than on the Galactica so everyone just about fit. Adama, Roslin and Karl had travelled over with Megan and Showboat joining them. Based on the prejudice that was ripe on the Pegasus it was decided that Hera should stay with her mother.

Lee sat crossed legged on the floor with Joseph in front, holding onto his hands and helping him to stand up onto his feet. He wasn't strong enough to stand on his own yet or walk, but he seemed exited to be up on two feet, giggling away.

"Gawa dah."

Lee couldn't believe they were nearly eleven months old, another six weeks and they would be turning one. It was amazing how fast time flew by, before he knew it they would be answering him back, and if they took after their mother, he was in trouble.

Roslin smiled down from the sofa, "They are growing up so fast."

Lee wasn't used to seeing her without her usual suits, "yeah and more mischievous."

"They get that from their mother," added Adama.

Lee laughed in agreement, thinking fondly about Kara's grin when she was plotting something. Shaking away his longing thoughts, he focused on Joseph, helping him walk forward two paces before collapsing down onto his legs, his butt cushioning him. Lee smiled as he watched his son pull himself back up immediately by grabbing onto his slacks, unsuccessfully attempting to stand back up until Lee lifted him onto his feet, rising to his own and continuing to hold onto Joseph's hands, holding onto them gently above his head. Joseph's grin widened as he took two supported footsteps forward, with his father stopping his legs from collapsing.

Just at that moment he heard the hatch door opening and Kara stepped through holding Lena in her arms. As everyone walked up to greet the little girl home, Lee lifted Joseph into his arms. "Do you want to go and see your sister?" he asked.

"Bwah," gurgled Joseph in response, his hand grabbing at Lee's dogtags.

They went over together towards the small crowd, his eyes meeting Kara's warmly. After everyone had welcomed Lena back, they placed the twins on the floor together who immediately set about playing with their toys, obviously happy at being reunited.

The afternoon and early evening went by like a breeze. Even Karl and Roslin seemed in ease of each other's company, even though the latter had been responsible for faking the death of Hera, a devastation that Kara and Lee had come to appreciate too closely in the last few weeks. The talk of the room mainly evolved around the twins, but gossip about the fleet crept in. Apparently Baltar was becoming very unpopular, his "extra-curricular" activities and laziness when it came to the needs of the fleet was getting to everyone. A few weeks before, Zarek had left the planet's surface and not returned. Rumours were circulating that he had resigned as Vice President and others were saying he had been pushed out by Baltar only to be replaced by other "unsavoury" members of the fleet.

It had been a year since his inauguration and the discovery of New Caprica and the settlement still looked like a glorified camping site, with a tiny market and a few ships dotted about. They had begun building a larger more permanent structure, but it had clearly been intended for some other use rather than just housing.

Politics was not generally a topic Kara really got involved in, usually acting as the muscle. Her mind wandered to the man sitting opposite from her, thinking back to the way he had held her in that storage room. She wanted him; needed him.

He looked over, their furtive gazes lingering as Roslin spoke. The heat building between them was oblivious to everyone else in the room, to all except Karl who noticed their frequent exchange and smiled inwardly to himself.

Despite her initial excitement and bubbly behaviour, Lena's energy soon waned and she yawned tiredly, wiping her hand under her eyes.

"Come on little one," said Kara and lifted the little girl from the floor. She was nearly asleep on her shoulder by the time everyone said goodnight. Joseph however was still wide awake and pulling on the bottom of Karl's slacks for attention as Kara carried Lena into the next room. After she changed her into a romper suit she laid her down into her crib. She was already fast asleep and dreaming. Kara stroked a hand through her hair. "I love you," she said with a smile and then turned out the light.

It was only early evening, but it was clear that the party was finished with the exit of one of the central guests. Adama called up the Galactica to send over the raptor to take them back and Lee went with them down to the hangar deck with Showboat.

She missed his presence immediately, keeping herself busy as she cleared away the few plates and mugs, getting them ready to be taken back to the Mess. It was a relief to have her family back again but there was something still bothering her, making her slam around the plates a little harder than she should.

"Is everything okay sir?" asked Megan as she played with Joseph on the floor.

"Yeah, great," replied Kara unconvincingly. But then she saw Joseph staring up at her expectantly, as if he was wondering what was up. His gaze was enough to melt anyone's heart. "Hey kiddo, mum's sorry, she didn't mean to be grumpy."

She lifted him up and into her arms; he too was starting to look sleepy.

"I think he's had a busy day," said Megan.

"Yeah, why don't you head off, have the evening to yourself and I'll put him to bed."

Once she was alone, and alone she felt, she set about giving Joseph a bath and getting him ready for bed. She was about to put him down for the night when he started wriggling about as if he was determined not to go to sleep for fear of missing something. "What's up Seph? You were sleepy earlier."

She only got a gurgle in response followed by a little yawn.

"So you are sleepy huh?"

But after several turns about the room he was not settling down. "Come on, give me a break kiddo," she said without any bite. It was clear Joseph was sleepy but unable to drop off to sleep, crying softly. He hadn't done this for months. "You missing your dad already?" she asked, conveying her own sentiments. She bounced him over her shoulder gently and done what she hadn't needed to do for months, quietly sung to him one of the few Colonial lullabies that she knew.

She felt her heart rate accelerate before she saw him, hearing the familiar sound of the hatch door being pushed further open. Turning she saw Lee standing in the doorway.

"I didn't know you could sing," he said with a smile.

Kara pulled her most modest looking smile, "everyone has a skill." Joseph was still over her shoulder, but was now asleep, his breathing slightly heavier.

Lee lingered in the doorway. He had been standing there for a few minutes just watching Kara gently sing their son to sleep. He couldn't leave things this way any longer; he needed to be with her and he needed to man up and let her know this.

Their focus remained on each other, with Kara gently rubbing Joseph's back.

She willed him to come across the room, her gaze softening, inviting. She was just placing a kiss to their son's head when Lee finally started to move slowly towards them. Kara had never felt this nervous before as he stroked a hand over his son's head, his eyes fixed on hers. She could nearly feel the desire burning within them as he leant in and slowly their lips met in a soft caress. They didn't stop until Joseph wriggled slightly, pulling them apart but my mere inches.

"I'll just put him to bed," said Kara quietly. Her meaning was clear; so they could be alone together. She walked reluctantly away to the adjoining room, returning a few minutes later alone, pulling the hatch to behind her. There was a communicator between the rooms should the twins make any noise.

Lee was standing exactly where she had left him and wasted no time crossing over to him, placing another kiss to his lips, her hand reaching up to cup his face. As they slowly caressed, Lee stroked up her arms until his hands were over hers and then he pulled away. The look on his face was suddenly serious.

"What is it?" asked Kara.

"Kara I..." he began, his thumb stroking her hand as he held her. "There's something I need to say first." Kara could feel her heart racing again, half passion, half worry that he was suddenly going to pull away or ask for something she couldn't give.

He was clearly a nervous wreck when he began again, "Kara, if we do this...I can't lose you again." Pausing, he seemed to find some strength, "if we do this you should know that I'm not going to let you go again, this is it, no take backs. We stop denying what's between us. So if being with me is something you can't do then tell me now and I'll step away, we'll continue to be friends but nothing more, with no resentment."

She could feel his hands shaking slightly and she felt a knot tightening in her stomach. Her breathing deepened as she lowered Lee's hands and stepped backwards slightly so she could see him clearly. His face look dejected already, which wasn't quite what she intended.

Apart from becoming a mother, this was probably one of the most difficult things she had ever had to do having always lived her life with everything closed inside, never fully telling anyone what she felt, relying upon pure action. "Lee, you know what sort of person I am. I never quite grasped the principle of monogamy growing up..." She paused, that wasn't quite how she meant it to sound. "Lee, since you and I...since we...I haven't been with anyone else, no-one. Not because I couldn't but because I didn't want to."

Lee's face seemed to soften slightly, it wasn't the most romantic of sentiments, but coming from Kara it was better than some of the finest Caprican love poetry. It had nearly been two years and neither of them had even entertained the notion of being with someone else.

As wonderful as it sounded he needed to be sure, "did you mean what you said before, when we were torn apart?" _When you said you loved me._

There was a pause as the tears pooled slightly in Kara's eyes and then she stepped forward and stroked a hand down his cheek before kissing him, slightly firmer than before. Lee felt her answer as she pulled in closer, her hand reaching into his hair. Lee's arms moved up her back and then down again. His kisses spread up her jaw and to the top of her earlobe making her moan.

"Gods, Lee," she whispered stroking her cheek into his as he continued to nip slightly at her ear.

"What do you want?" he whispered back making the hairs on her arm tingle.

Her voice was clearer as she said, "it's been two years Lee, I think you know what I want."

He smiled and kissed her forehead before moving back to her lips. Their actions sped up as the desire for each other intensified, the heat between them soaring as they pulled off each other's shirts into a pile on the floor, which was soon met by a set of tanks as Kara swiftly lifted Lee's over his head. She smiled wickedly as she reached her hand up over his strong abs, biting her bottom lip as she gripped his strong arms, pulling him into another kiss.

He was desperate to see her body again, pulling off her tanks as they kicked off their boots. And then Kara met his gaze as she slowly pulled off her crop top. It took all of his resolve not to push her up against the wall straight away. Instead he reached up her body, stroking a thumb over her breasts.

Kara gasped as he reached down and took one nipple into his mouth, nipping at the teat. She wanted to push him back onto the bed, but then he kissed her again before scooping his hands underneath her butt and lifted her into his arms. Immediately she wrapped her legs around him, pulling his lips to hers as he carried her to the bed, placing her gently down on the edge. Kara lay back, propped up by her elbows, inviting him in.

They both knew this first time would be quick, their resolve unable to hold back any longer. Their desire had been aching for this moment for so long.

Quickly Lee unbuckled his slacks as Kara did the same and then she lifted her butt allowing him to pull them off in one swift pull. Clambering onto her knees she grabbed the front of Lee's slacks pulling him forward into another sensuous kiss and then slowly she reached inside, cupping his behind before pulling them down along with his briefs, releasing him. He was already hard and ready for her, gasping as she grabbed at his length.

"Frak Kara," he moaned into her mouth. "It's been two years remember."

Kara grinned mischievously, releasing him she cupped his face and looked into his eyes. The grin went, replaced by softness. "I want you."

He didn't need telling twice, scooping her up, he got onto the bed, placing her back down so she was on her back with her head on the pillows. Slowly he traced kisses up her stomach, making her back arch from the pleasure, and then up her breast bone until he was at her neck, his body fully ensconced between her legs. He stroked back her long hair gently. The only thing dividing their flesh was her briefs.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"Gods yes, please," she purred, raising her butt in invitation.

Lee made short work of her briefs, tossing them to the side and then returned to her mouth, meeting in another passionate kiss. She could feel him against her inner thigh, pressing against her and wanting access.

She looked at him as she reached down and took him in hand, guiding him to her. He entered in a slow and smooth movement, harnessing all of his will not to release straight away. It was a sensation they hadn't felt in so long. They paused just taking in the moment and then Lee leant in, placing a kiss to her lips as he slowly thrust himself deeper inside. Kara gasped, tightening around him as slowly he continued to thrust, his strong arms either side of her, placing soft kisses to her neck and jaw line.

It was amazing. They had frakked before on many occasions, but it had never been like this. Kara raised her knee slightly higher, her foot hooking slightly on his behind. A soft moan escaped her lips as he suddenly thrust slightly deeper, the shockwaves exploding within her in waves.

He continued, his pace quickening bit by bit until she could feel his body shaking.

"Lee," she moaned as he buried his head into her neck, biting down slightly on her soft flesh as he climaxed, holding it deep inside her before his body finally relaxed.

His body felt euphoric, the sensation amazing as his orgasm buzzed through his entire body. It was the firm pressure of a kiss to his cheek that made him lift his head from her neck, kissing his way up softly before raising up onto his arms, taking in the beautiful woman who lay below him, smiling warmly with her golden hair spread over the dark pillow. He couldn't resist dipping in again, softly kissing her lower lip, their tongues meeting in a slow caress.

"Gods, Lee," she gasped as he switched the kiss to her ear, making a mental note that this was one of her most sensitive spots. Reluctantly he rolled off to the side, his hand stroking across her breasts. And then she turned towards him, her knee hitched up across his.

There was something so peaceful written across her face, something Lee had never seen before. He felt her finger trace a line across his chest, sending tingles up and down his body.

She wasn't normally speechless, but the pleasure was still washing through her. After a few minutes she could finally find the words, "wow Lee that was..."

Lee didn't let her finish, placing a firm kiss to her lips before pulling away with a goofy smile on his face. "Do you know how many times I've dreamt of this moment?"

Kara smiled warmly, "did it live up to expectation?"

He stroked her face, his smile more serious, "left it for dust."

Even though this wasn't the first time they had been together, this was the first time that they had truly made love. He wanted to study her body, learn every curve, every spot that made music to his ears as she gasped in pleasure.

"I'm not quite the same as I was," she said, as he stroked one hand down her stomach, the other entwining with hers.

"What do you mean?" asked Lee, only seeing perfection. Kara brushed her hand down her stomach to indicate a few faint lines. "You mean these? They're the most beautiful marks in the world Kara, this is where you grew our babies."

She didn't know that Lee could ever say something so sweet and mushy, making her grin widely. "That's cute Lee, really."

Lee laughed, "Too sickly sweet?"

"Just promise me one thing Lee."

"What's that?"

"No pet names."

This made Lee laugh again, feigning shock, "you mean I can't call you schnookums from now on?

Kara burst out laughing. "Not unless you want my foot to kick you in the ass," she said jokingly.

"I might like that though."

Kara guffawed again, only Lee Adama could make her laugh as if she was a teenage girl. But then she went suddenly serious when she saw the scar on his neck. Gently she reached up, tracing a finger over the raised skin. Lee took hold over her hand, removing it from his neck, and placed a kiss to her palm.

"It's fine."

"Lee, I think you and I both know that the cylons did a good number on us," she said.

They were both silent for a moment, both reflecting on what they had been through together. It was a time in their life which they had both vowed to try and forget, but there was something oddly comforting to share the memory together. Lee traced a hand over her shoulder, gently rolling her onto her front, his hand stroking down the barely visible lines that criss-crossed down her back then softly placing a kiss to her shoulder.

Kara felt the tingles washing through her body, all the way to her toes. Rolling Lee onto his back she straddled him in one quick swoop. "They didn't beat us Lee," she said as she leant in to kiss him, her tongue licked gently at his top lip.

He felt his hands down her body, stopping at her hips and gripping her firmly. They closed their eyes, taking in the pleasure as Kara lowered herself down slowly, taking him inside her again. The orgasm shocked through her immediately. Gasping she opened her eyes, looking at him intently as she started to slowly rock her hips in a steady rhythm.

This time they lasted longer, her pace gradually quickening as the waves shocked through her one after the other, until she had to push her hand up against the wall to keep her steady, quickening until she saw the look of ecstasy wash over Lee's face. His sudden release sent a bolt of lightning striking through her, making her spasm as she leant in for another kiss.

Completely spent she collapsed down into his safe embrace.

They lay there in each other arms, wholly satisfied together. Eventually Lee heard her gentle breathing deepening slightly as she fell asleep. He stroked back her hair lovingly. He had seen another side of her tonight, another hidden depth to the woman he loved.

He knew it was the wrong time to think of his brother, but he thought back to something Zak had said once, just after he had decided to propose. Lee had been happy for him, despite his jealousy, but questioned whether Kara was the sort of person who could fall in love.

"_You don't understand Lee," _he had said, _"There's a whole other side to her. Maybe at first she wasn't committed to me, hell I wasn't either, but then after I took her on that surprise holiday back to her home town on Picon, something changed. She was the same Kara, but something changed in her eyes and when she looks at me, it's as if I'm the only person alive in the Worlds."_

Lee had laughed at his brother's sentiments. But he had been right, Kara _had_ loved Zak back then.

But now she was in _his_ arms and he knew finally that she loved him without the need to be explicit.

Stirring she awoke from her slumber, a little dazed until she lifted her head and saw him, a smile spreading across her face just for him, and he knew then what it felt like to be the only man in her existence.

Oh yes, he finally realised what it felt like to be loved by Kara Thrace.


	41. Disquiet

**AN: sorry for the delay, I have no excuse except being busy **

Chapter 40

The warm water cascaded over her shoulders, splashing down onto the tiled floor before being sucked down into the drainage system to be cleansed and recycled. Kara slicked back her hair, loving the feeling of the warm water splashing down on her face. Even though they had settled on a planet with a constant water source, the ship was still subject to rationing. After much debate however, Adama had agreed to increase shower lengths to fifteen minutes maximum. It was a luxury, and she savoured every moment.

She felt the warm and comforting arms suddenly encircle her waist, smiling as Lee placed a soft kiss just below her ear. Another place he had found to make her gasp. She turned around in his arms so her breasts were flush against his bare chest, the water cascading over their heads as she placed a kiss immediately to his lips.

"Morning," replied Lee with a smile, holding her face gently with his hand.

Kara kissed him again before saying with a purr, "mmmm good morning."

They continued to kiss as the water flowed over them until suddenly it switched off leaving them dripping wet. Lee reached out of the cubicle and grabbed a towel, wrapping it around Kara. They wished they could use his water rations too, but then they would have to explain to Garner, who was in charge of rationing, why Lee was deciding to take his showers in Kara's quarters.

It had only been a week since their amazing night together and they were sure the rumour mill was already working its way around the ship. It was hard to cover up the fact that Lee hadn't spent a single night in his rack and during the day seemed to be walking on air. They knew it was only a matter of time before their secret was exposed, but for now they didn't need to care about the inevitable.

"Did you get the kids off to the nursery okay?" asked Kara as she scrubbed the towel over her hair. Due to the merger of the two crews, Adama had insisted that a nursery be installed on the Pegasus, it was smaller than the one on the Galactica, but Lena and Seph loved it there with four other children to play with.

"Yeah, I don't think they even noticed I had gone," replied Lee, looking at himself briefly in the steamed up mirror. His attention was drawn back to Kara as she threw her towel over his head and exited the bathroom. He didn't need asking twice, following her out into the bedroom. His breath caught in his throat as she stood in the middle of the room with her back to him, completely naked except for the towel she was still using to dry her hair. He waited at the hatch, admiring her from afar before his desire took hold and he walked over, encircling her waist with his arms and placing a kiss to her neck, making her moan slightly and dropping the towel.

She hooked her arm around his neck and turned her head so that their lips just met in a soft caress. Slowly she turned in his arms so that she was against his chest, their eyes only inches apart. "Garner's going to have my ass if I don't get moving," she said, leaning in for another deep kiss.

"Mmmn? Who cares, you can't do anything to please him."

Kara grinned mischievously, pushing him back onto the small sofa and then straddling him. She could feel him against her thigh, more than ready for her. "I really am a bad influence on you," she said as she placed a kiss to his jaw before moving up to his lips.

"The worst," he replied as their kisses intensified, their desire for each other nearly at bursting point.

Kara couldn't help the small squeal that escaped her mouth as he nipped suddenly at her ear, "frak, Lee, I want you now." No longer caring about the meeting she was already late for, he lifted her up into his arms, moving them swiftly over to the table and placing her butt firmly onto the edge.

She had a wicked smile on her face as her legs encircled him and lent back slightly to give him access. Cupping his arms around her to hold her up, Lee entered her swiftly, unable to take things slowly. The fact that this was the position in which they had first made love was not lost on them as they started a steady rhythm. This time, however, they were not afraid to watch the pleasure wash over their faces as the orgasms took hold, cherishing the moment and not afraid to show how much they wanted to be together.

Their breathing quickened as the pressure built up, the sweat pouring down Lee's back as he started to thrust faster and faster until finally Kara cried out, "oh Gods, Lee!" And then he couldn't hold himself back any longer, pulling her flush to him as he came hard, drowning out his moan into her hair as the shockwaves arched through him.

After a few minutes he could finally speak again, "Gods, Kara...that was."

She pulled him to her for a firm kiss, before pulling away again, suddenly serious. "I really have to go now, I'm nearly 30 minutes late." As if on cue, a voice sounded over the comm system, ordering her to go immediately to Garner's quarters. Kara pouted, "frak."

"You'd better go."

"Great," said Kara as she reluctantly got down from the table and reached for her uniform. "Listen if you can't find me later, Garner's probably had me thrown in the brig."

"He's not that bad," replied Lee, grabbing his wash kit as he needed another shower.

"He's had it in for me ever since Fisk made him the XO, and he's definitely still convinced we sabotaged that ship."

"Well at least he's right about something," said Lee with a smile, remembering the night when they had moved the Colonial refugees over to the Galactica. They had barely gotten away with the small act of sabotage and Garner made it obvious he thought it had been down to them.

As soon as Kara finished doing up the buttons on her duty blues she swaggered over to Lee, a glint in her eye, "I'll see you later," she said and gave him a quick kiss before dashing out of the hatch.

Halfway down the corridor she looked at her watch and cursed. She was over 30 minutes late. Perhaps he really would throw her ass in the brig this time. Shrugging her shoulders, she realised that she really didn't care. For the first time in her life she felt like a complete person. It still amazed her how the things she had never searched for or wanted had happened, and above all was making her happy. She never would've imagined having a family could bring about such a change in her.

She braced herself as she wrapped sharply on the hatch to Garner's quarters, wincing slightly as he angrily told her to enter. Walking in with a confident stride she stood to attention, all too aware that Fisk had decided to join them for the morning meeting. Back on the Galactica her meetings with Tigh had been just as tedious, but his mood was nothing compared to Garner, at least with the former they had finally developed a mutual respect.

"What time to do you call this?" he asked angrily, staring at his watch.

"I'm sorry sir, I got sidetracked." _Definitely sidetracked, _but she wasn't about to tell him the real reason why.

"When I arrange a meeting for 0900 hours Major, that's the time I expect you to be here, standing alert and not like you've just stepped out of a shower."

_Or like she'd just been frakked hard by the D-CAG. _Kara bit the inside of her lip to stop herself from smiling at the memory, still feeling the freshly frakked flush in her cheeks. "It won't happen again sir," she said without much conviction.

"You're damn right it won't happen again, Major. I don't know what discipline you were taught over on the bucket, but here we obey orders. If one of my deckhands ever pulled a stunt like this..."

"I think she gets the picture Colonel," interrupted Fisk lazily, as if he too really didn't care what the XO thought.

Garner had been an odd choice for XO, having started his fleet career very much at the bottom as a deck hand. He was obviously a skilled engineer, but useless as a leader and tactician and Kara felt he had no business being in command. The rumour around the ship was that he had reassigned one of the leading officers from the CIC to mess duty, just because he didn't like her. For a moment Kara imagined having that as her punishment, frak it would drive her crazy.

"You're not going to have your normal meeting today," added Fisk as he gulped down some coffee, which Kara suspected contained more than just coffee. "Word has come up from the President that requires our attention."

"What does _he _want?" asked Kara.

"That's the President of the Colonies you're talking about," interrupted Garner harshly.

"Yeah," replied Kara, suppressing the urge to roll her eyes. "We go way back."

The room went quiet as Fisk looked between them, commanding silence.

Kara sat down obediently opposite him, "so what's the word?"

"I'm sure you're aware there's been some disquiet in the fleet?" That was putting it mildly. For the past week all of the workers down on the planet had taken strike action, refusing to continue building until their demands were met. Fisk clearly disliked Baltar too, holding him to blame for the death of Cain. "Well it looks like Baltar actually trying to be Presidential for once and has made some decisions."

Kara raised her eyebrows in surprise. Baltar could easily go down in history as the most inactive President ever, barely making any decisions or passing new laws, choosing to spend most of his time shacked up with different women.

"He's arranged a number of visits to the orbiting ships," he continued. "Hoping to spread morale or some shit like that."

"Great, with his popularity it'll be a breeze to arrange his security detail," replied Kara sarcastically, dreading where this conversation was going.

"Good," said Fisk, obviously ignoring her tone. "Because he's requested my top officers to be part of his security team and I understand that you did the same for the former President."

Kara sighed, "that was a long time ago on Cloud 9," but she remembered well those few days, standing behind Roslin in the auditorium.

"Well rumour has it the Quorum's planning to make a vote of no confidence on Cloud 9, they've called a hearing."

"Ah, thought there must be a purely selfish reason why he would suddenly take an interest in the fleet. I can start making arrangements straight away."

"Good, share out the protection duties with the other officers. I want you and Major Adama to be part of the team on Cloud 9 as you have experience dealing with the open auditorium, and from what I hear you both stopped a suspect with a stealth gun last time."

Kara tried to hide her smile at the thought of spending some time with Lee on Cloud 9, even if Fisk's praise for their handling of the security last time was slightly misplaced. Discovering the man carrying the stealth weapon had been a fluke after Lee involved himself in a brawl, which had gotten her a punch to the face.

"There's more," he added and threw down some papers. "Consider it your punishment to address the other officers on this issue." With a frown, Kara cautiously picked up the papers, aware of the grin on Garner's face. It didn't take her long to get the gist.

"Oh you've got to be frakking kidding me."

_oooo_

The Ready room was louder than normal when Lee entered for the afternoon debriefing and sat down in the front row. After leaving Kara's quarters he had flown a three hour CAP with Showboat. He didn't really need a viper, since that night with Kara he had been flying high. He had never felt this happy or fulfilled with a woman before.

"Hey Apollo," shouted out one of the pilots, Jeffers. "Where the frak have you been? There's an empty bunk where you used to sleep."

"Working," replied Lee cordially.

"Yeah? Who on?" added Narcho.

The raucous laughter filled the room and even Lee fought hard not to smile. At first none of the Pegasus' crew had welcomed him, but he had warmed to them slowly over time. It was Showboat who leant in and nudged him with her elbow.

"Seriously Apollo," she whispered. "You look as if you've been floating on high all week, who's the lucky lady?"

It was at that moment that Kara chose to stride confidently into the room. Lee's head lifted straight away, smiling slightly as she glanced furtively back at him. An exchange that was oblivious to everyone else in the room, except for Showboat.

Patting his arm briefly she whispered, "I'm happy for you mate," just as the room quietened down.

Kara stood behind the podium and Lee noticed immediately that the glow on her face from earlier had gone.

"You'll be pleased to know that Garner's training exercise for tomorrow has been cancelled," she began, which was followed by jubilant whoops from around the room. "But..." she continued with a smile over the cheers. "We're on protection duty for the man who likes to call himself President." This time everyone groaned in unison. "He's down to visit every ship still in orbit. Fisk had assigned Apollo, Narcho, Stinger and myself to cover his overnight visit to Cloud 9."

"Sure, that's fair," called out Joker from the back. "How comes you get the luxury ship?"

"Because I'm the best, and I also get to designate the rest of you out. So congratulations Joker for being the first assigned to the Tylium ship. I'll be sure to ask that you're berthed with all the machinery." She ignored the curse that was muttered from Joker at the back, chancing a glance at Lee and winking, "anyone else want to try and piss me off?"

The room seemed to be in good spirits, with no-one taking Baltar's imminent visit seriously, and talking wildly. Luckily Kara looked up just in time to see Fisk and Garner walk into the room. "Attention on deck!" she called and stood to attention, everyone else jumping to their feet in unison.

"At ease," said Fisk as he walked to the podium. "I wanted to make sure you manage to address everyone in relation to Baltar's new decree."

"As if I could forget," muttered Kara.

"Good, then you won't mind if I watch for myself."

Kara sighed deeply, "_President _Baltar has actually been doing something." Ignoring the cough coming from Garner she continued. "Basically it doesn't matter if cylons find us or not, we'll be wiped out anyway." She suddenly had the entire room's attention. "According to Baltar the highest percentile of survivors are aged between 35 and 45, with the second highest being 25 to 35. The lowest group is under 25. In other words we're frakked unless people get frakking."

Garner shifted on his feet. It was obvious that he was less than pleased at the way Kara was addressing Baltar's new decree.

"The President is in the process of solving this problem, implementing a new system in the hopes of dramatically increasing the population." She paused for a moment, getting to the crunch. "Every person in the fleet capable of conception is now required to contribute to the population."

Everyone went silent so Fisk stood up and approached the podium. "That includes all military personnel."

Now the mutterings around the room started again, many holding dismayed gazes.

"Is Baltar ordering us to start frakking each other?" shouted out Narcho. "Cause I'm game for that."

Kara suppressed a smile, glancing at Lee who seemed unfazed by her words. "Not quite. In order to survive the gene pool needs to be spread out as far as possible, meaning there should only be one man to one woman."

"Frak that," shouted Sykes.

"Watch your mouth Lieutenant," ordered Fisk, nodding to Kara to continue.

"Don't worry Lieutenant, you're not being asked to suddenly become married, but everyone in the fleet who is capable is expected within the next five years to produce an offspring. He's not asking everyone to become parents, just contribute."

"In what way?" shouted out Sykes again.

"Do you really need me to draw you a diagram Sykes? It involves a cup and some dirty magazines."

Showboat was rarely vocal in briefings, but chose to speak out, "and what about those of us who can't fill a cup? I'm a pilot, which I can't exactly do if I'm knocked up."

"That'll be up to you. You can either donate to someone or take nine months downtime," Kara shrugged, "after that it's your choice." In truth she didn't like Baltar's latest idea, not that it affected her, she'd already done her bit twofold, but it could be risky to down a large number of their pilots.

Fisk began walking to the exit, followed by Garner, "thank you Major, you look like you have everything in hand."

It took only a few seconds after the Commander and his XO left before everyone started shouting out at once and Kara let them for a while. They had a right to be annoyed about the situation.

Deciding they had been given enough venting time she shouted out "hey!"commanding silence. "That's better, now I don't like this much either, but this comes from the President, so make a choice. He's not asking you to start frakking now, but within the next five years. We've already been inundated with requests for "donations" from people planet side, so even you, Sykes, might have a choice."

"I don't need any help, _sir,_" replied Sykes with a sneer.

"Whatever Lieutenant, now get back to work, dismissed."

The room filed out quickly and nosily, with everyone talking intently about Baltar's scheme. No-one noticing as Lee lingered behind, closing the hatch.

Kara smiled wickedly as he turned back towards her and leant against the door. "Did you like my little sex education talk?" she teased as she walked towards him, a little swagger in her step.

"I wouldn't really call that an education Kara."

She pulled a modest shrug and then leant into kiss him, ripping down the sides of his flight suit, "really?"

Lee laughed as they continued to kiss, gently pushing Kara back until they were in the seating area, ducking behind the chairs. The beginnings of a relationship were always great, barely able to keep their hands off each other, finding out the many ways to pleasure each other. Lee was especially good at that last part, kissing his way up her jaw line.

"Gods I love that," she moaned, loving the feeling as he stroked his hands up her chest and cupping the sides of her breasts through her uniform. She wanted more, wanted him to rip her clothes off right there and then on the floor of the Ready room.

"I want you," she whispered in his ear.

"Here?" asked Lee with a smile, receiving a nip to the ear in response. "Risks turn you on then?"

"Mmmm yeah," she moaned as Lee moved his hands down to the top of her slacks, undoing them before sliding them down slightly, kissing down the front of her briefs agonisingly slowly. Then pulling down her slacks over her butt he pushed aside her briefs and proved why he deserved the call-sign of a god.

For Kara the next few minutes were pure ecstasy until finally she screamed out, "My Gods Adama!" as an orgasm rocketed through her body.

Lee looked up at her with a big satisfied grin

"Frak Lee, where did you learn to do that?"

"I don't think you really want to know the answer to that one."

Kara giggled, "no, not really."

Quickly she pulled her slacks back up and straightened her uniform. As much as they both wanted to continue what they were doing, she had a security detail to organise and a CAP to fly in a few hours. Before they left, Lee approached her slowly, stroking a hand down her cheek.

"You're flushed," he said and kissed her before opening the hatch and sneaking out.

_oooo_

The moment in the Ready room was playing over and over in his head as Lee walked to the officer's head. He'd not had a chance to have a shower since his CAP and he was still sweaty. Not only that, but he desperately needed to have a cold shower to calm his body down.

He had a bounce in his step as he entered the head and couldn't help the smile that he wore across his face. He made short work of ripping off his flight suit and throwing it in the locker.

"Where the frak have you been?" asked Showboat as she came out of the shower scrubbing at her hair, a small towel covering her modesty. "I thought you were right behind me."

Lee merely smiled in response as he pulled off his tanks and added them to the locker so that he was down to only his briefs.

"My gods, you two didn't do what I think you did?"

He laughed briefly, "What would that be?"

"Frak in the Ready room."

"Not quite," replied Lee, taking down his briefs and barely covering himself with his towel. No-one on board Battlestars particularly worried about nudity, and they had all seen each other in states of undress at some point. He remembered his first shower on board the Galactica, just after they had escaped the cylons, but before they had kept coming every 33 minutes. Kara had never been shy either, strutting through the head wearing nothing, making many glances, including his, turn her way. He'd needed a cold shower that day too.

"I love the start of relationships," continued Showboat, "nothing but frakking with a bit of talking."

"Listen, we would like to keep this private, so could..."

"Oh no worries, I won't say anything, but it doesn't take a genius to work it out."

Lee had to concede the point. He and Kara used to create enough rumours _before _they had finally done something about it.

As the water cascaded down his back, he couldn't help the feeling of euphoria that still gripped his body. He never could have imagined that he would finally be with her, waking up and finding her entwined with him, sound asleep. Kara had never come across a cuddler, but every night she rolled into him, snuggling into his side.

Fresh from his shower, he was walking to the hangar deck to do some work on his viper when he heard the shouts from around the corner. Picking up his pace, he rounded the corner just in time to witness the fight sprawling out of the officer's mess, a mass of limbs flying everywhere.

"Hey!" he shouted out, darting forward to try and split up the brawl only to be immediately pushed back, but he leapt forward again, noticing that Stinger was also trying to separate the fight from the other side. The Captain was grabbed and thrown suddenly forward, colliding sharply with Lee and sending them crashing into a table, ending up in a pile on the floor on top of each other.

The marines came soon after, separating everyone and dragging them to opposite sides of the room. Lee was still in a heap on the floor, and pushed off Stinger who was nursing a bruised jaw.

"What the frak was that all about!" he shouted, realising that he'd hit his head hard on the wall as he fell. Gripping the back of his head he stumbled slightly sideways.

"Whoa, are you okay?" asked Stinger, leaping up to his feet and stopping Lee from keeling over.

"I'm fine, just smacked my head," he said, drawing back his hand and seeing blood. "Frak," he muttered before turning back to the offending officers. He noted Cooper and Joker were part of the pack, along with some other junior pilots. Raising his voice again, Lee shouted, "I repeat, what the frak was that all about?"

Everyone went silent, choosing to look at the floor rather than their superior officer.

"If I don't get an explanation within the next thirty seconds then you'll all be taken down to the brig." Slowly he counted, despite his dizziness, all the way until he reached thirty, and then nodded to the marines. In all, six officers were escorted to the brig, each one bearing injuries, but neither willing to rat the other out.

Lee gripped the back of his head, wincing at the pain.

"You should get that seen to," said Stinger, whose nose had started to bleed.

"It's nothing, just going to have a bitch of a headache. Any idea what that was all about?"

Stinger hadn't been his biggest fan, but in recent months they had gained a mutual respect. "I'm not sure, I heard the words Baltar and then all hell broke loose."

"Right, frakking Baltar."

"You don't like him either huh?"

Lee looked at him knowingly, "probably for a very different reason."

"Ouch," replied Stinger, using his own imagination to guess what had happened. "I'll report this to Fisk, let him decide what to do with them. I'll make sure two counts of striking a superior officer are laid against them."

Lee shrugged, "it was the wall that hit me really."

"Yeah, after I was thrown into you."

Lee didn't respond, merely kicked at the nearest chair absently before walking out of the room. He had two kids to pick up from day care and an icepack to find.

_oooo_

Her CAP was boring, dragging along with endless monotony. Her wingman, Narcho, was spending the time either in silence or moaning about what had been said in the Ready room.

"I mean seriously, what does he hope to achieve?" he asked her over the private comm.

"The survival of the human race?" asked Kara in a bored tone of voice.

"By forcing babies on people, that isn't right."

"Since when did you grow a conscience Narch?"

"You may like kiddies Starbuck, but I don't want any."

"I didn't exactly plan those little kiddies..."

"Yeah, I heard you just decided to frak your CAG one day."

"Watch it Narcho, I could easily blow you out of the sky before you have a chance to apologise. What I'm trying to say, is that I didn't plan them, but now I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Whatever Starbuck, I just don't want to be forced into it."

"You're not," she couldn't believe she was defending Baltar. "Just make sure you do something in the next five years."

For the rest of the CAP Narcho was silent, refusing to speak to her like a child having a tantrum. Kara had rolled her eyes when he didn't respond to her order to head in.

She was relieved to be back on deck, pushing back her viper's canopy and undoing her safety harness.

"Starbuck," a voice called out and she looked down to see Garner standing next to her viper.

"Everything okay sir?" she asked, trying to piece together in her head if she had been more than just tardy that morning.

"Six of your pilots have been sent to the brig, I need you and Narcho to fly another CAP."

_Frak, _"is this part of my punishment sir?" she asked unable to stop herself.

"Watch it Major and get your ass back out there."

Muttering, Kara stood up in her cockpit and made to climb over the side.

"Are you deaf?" shouted Garner.

"No, but I've had two kids, so unless you want my CAP to get messy, I suggest you let me use the head." She didn't wait for his response, jumping down the ladder quickly and striding off with purpose towards the head, dividing people in her wake.

At least Narcho was slightly more talkative on their second CAP and stopped moaning about the state of the fleet.

"Okay, my turn," he said during another round of _name that movie starring actors that are all dead. _The morbid title had been added after the cylons attacked. "Romantic chick flick, Picon, starring Holly Hayworth."

Kara yawned inside her helmet, making it mist up briefly. It was nearly 2300 hours and she was exhausted, "dunno, give me another clue."

"Aw come on Starbuck it was a classic."

"You lost me at "romantic.""

"Okay another clue," he thought for a moment. "Most slushy ending to a movie ever, even had me in tears."

"You're such a girl Narch."

"Hey, it was sad."

She actually remembered the film well, not because she liked it, but because she had seen it with Lee and Zak. She had laughed her head off when Zak was the only one to cry at the end, whereas Lee had just looked like he needed to vomit. It had been another reminder that she and Zak were really nothing alike compared to her and Lee. "Journey to Picon."

"See, you have seen it."

"Everyone saw it Narcho."

It was 2300 hours when they were finally released from their CAP. It was an eerie time to be pulled onto the deck. The main lighting was off making the place look gloomy and there were only a few deckhands on duty. No-one was running around frantically, calmly pushing two other vipers out to the launch tubes to begin the midnight CAP.

Kara yawned widely as she sat at the top of her ladder, ticking boxes as her deckhand looked over her viper. She was too tired to pay any particular attention to what the young deckhand was saying, who looked just as exhausted. She had made a point of learning the deckhand's name after being caught with Lee. As far as she could tell, the woman hadn't spread the gossip.

"When are you off duty?" asked Kara.

"Same as you," replied Anya a little meekly.

"Right," yawned Kara. "I think this crap is all done then, don't you?"

"Sir?"

But she didn't have time to answer as a blood curdling scream came from across the other side of the deck making Kara nearly fall off her ladder. Seeing a few deckhands gathering beside a raptor she ran over, the hairs on her arms standing on end, her heart racing. "What the frak is going on?" she asked a distraught looking deckhand who merely pointed to the raptor.

"I was just doing some repairs underneath."

Kara grabbed a torch from one of the equipment trays and bent down by the raptor, "if this is just a frakking rat or something," she mumbled as she lay down on her side. Narcho was beside her, also peering under into the darkness as she shone her torch. At first she saw nothing, but then the light caught suddenly on a hand, making her flinch backwards, rolling onto her back. "Fetch doc Phillips, now! And the Master-at-Arms, no-one is to leave the deck until told otherwise!"

She looked at Narcho and knew he was thinking the same thing, _what the frak was going on?_

_oooo_

It was nearing 0200 hours when Lee finally heard the hatch to Kara's quarters open. He'd stayed awake, hearing that Garner had sent her out on another CAP. Besides he had a headache, which no amount of aspirin could take care of. He was still holding an icepack to his head, trying to dull the pain.

Turning to greet her, he noticed she looked ashen straight away. Throwing down the icepack he walked straight to her and she collapsed her head into his shoulder.

"What's wrong? Kara?"

"Bad frakking night."

"What happened?"

"Ensign Pittman's dead, we found her under a raptor on the flight deck."

Lee took her by the shoulders and pushed her away from his neck so he could see her eyes. She was clearly upset. Placing a kiss to her forehead he asked, "how?"

"Doc is going to do an autopsy, but the strangle marks around her neck were a big giveaway. What happened to your head?" she asked pointing to the icepack, needing to change the subject.

"Got in the way of wall."

"I hear we have people in the brig."

"Yeah, none of them will say what the fight was about."

Gently Kara took a look at his head and winced, "bet that smarts."

"Yeah, especially if you keep prodding it like that."

Kara pouted, "want me to kiss it better?"

Lee laughed, making his head hurt more. They made quick work of getting ready for bed, settling on the mattress. Lying on their sides, they were too exhausted to do anything else, their fingers stroking and entwining with each other.

"Something's going on Lee."

"I know," was all he replied.

There was definitely something stirring in the fleet, but they had no idea what. Whatever it was, it was guaranteed not to be good. But they pushed those thoughts aside as gently they entwined together under the bed sheets, safe in each other's arms.


	42. Cloud 9

**AN: Phew just managed to finish this chapter before I went on holiday. US here I come ****! Can't believe I've been married a year now, seems like only yesterday when Kara was slamming Simms head into a desk *sniff***

Chapter 41

It felt as if he was entering an interrogation chamber when Lee walked into the room. The Galactica had just used one of the conference rooms for this type of incident, but the Pegasus had a designated room specifically designed for questioning. It was always locked up and Lee had never seen such a room on the Atlantia, though he did know the Master-at-Arms had their own office. But that didn't stop him wondering if this was an invention created by Cain, he wouldn't put it past her.

The room was sparsely furnished except for a chair in the middle with a microphone in front. If it was designed to intimidate, it was working. Cautiously Lee went over and stood before the chair, half expecting leg chains to spring out from nowhere. Sergeant Miller was even scarier than Sergeant Hadrian from the Galactica; standing tall he was at least 6'3 and heavily built. Hadrian was also standing at the far side of the room, staring intently at him with Garner at her side.

"Please take a seat sir," said Miller.

Lee looked up at him for a moment and then sat down, feeling all of the eyes staring at him. It had been two days since the dead ensign had been found and Kara had been interviewed already. She had warned him about the closeness of the room. Her solution had been to turn the chair around so she could lean her arms on the back. Apparently Garner had been less than pleased.

Unfortunately it was Hadrian who stepped forward to begin the questioning. "Can you please state your name and rank for the record please sir."

"Major Lee Adama."

"Major Adama, can you explain for the record where you were between 2200 and 2300 hours on the night of Ensign Pittman's death."

"I was in Major Thrace's quarters taking care of our children as she was on a double CAP." He glanced over at Garner who was staring him down intently, making him feel very uncomfortable.

"I see," said Hadrian, her voice slightly disbelieving. "Did you know Ensign Pittman?"

Lee shrugged, "of course. I was the CAG for a while and she was a raptor pilot."

"How well did you know her?"

"Not at all, she was a raptor pilot, that's all I knew."

"Did you ever associate with her out of duty?"

"Err, I think we played cards once."

Hadrian paced slightly about the room as if she was getting ready for a kill. As the seconds went by, Lee found himself fidgeting slightly in his chair.

"Major," she continued at last. "I wonder if you can clear something up for me, because from talking to your bunk mates it appears no-one knows where you have been sleeping for the past week. As far as they're concerned you've not spent a single night in your quarters."

The room was definitely getting smaller, "Err..."

"I think we need a lot more than "err" Major," said Garner stepping forward.

It was useless to lie as there was sure to be someone who could say he wasn't working. "I've been staying in Major Thrace's quarters."

"Doesn't the non-fraternisation policy mean anything to you?" Garner's voice was now harsher. "You already have one mark for this on your record, involving the same officer no less."

"We have two children together who are a handful," he added, thinking now would be the best time to start lying. "I've been helping out a lot and sleeping on the sofa." Though his lie only stretched to where he had been sleeping

His questioners stepped back slightly, their faces looking completely unconvinced.

"And Major Thrace can confirm this can she?" asked Hadrian.

"Of course," replied Lee, hoping to hell that she would come up with the same lie. But he knew he needn't worry. If anyone could come up with a convincing story it was Kara. "Look, if you're trying to accuse me of something just say it."

Miller stepped forward, "we're not accusing you of anything Major, just trying to ascertain everyone's whereabouts for the past week. You can go back to your duties."

"That's it?" asked Lee a little shocked. The way his interrogation had begun, he had expected to be there for hours.

"I will of course be speaking to Major Thrace," added Miller.

Before Lee could leave, Garner walked right up to him so they were nearly nose to nose. "And believe me I will be keeping a close eye on the two of you. From now on you are to sleep in your rack unless Major Thrace is on duty."

"Yes sir," replied Lee with a salute, silently cursing him. He also knew that Garner would go as far as checking the officer's bunk room in the middle of the night.

"Dismissed."

Lee wasted no time getting as quickly out of the room as possible.

_oooo_

In the middle of the night Kara rolled over in her sleep, her body reaching out instinctively for Lee, but he wasn't there. The disappointment roused her from her slumber and she looked longingly at the pillow he had slept on. She missed having him in bed next to her.

It had been three days since Garner's interference and as expected Lee had heard the hatch door open to the officer's quarters at random times of the night. She hated the man for taking Lee away from her. Of course that hadn't stopped them from seizing every moment they did have together, even if that meant ducking into a cupboard.

The next morning Kara was tired, and after dropping the twins at day care, had gone in search of Lee. She smiled to herself when she saw him in the bunk room, his concentration focused on a scuff on his duty blues jacket. He was busy scrubbing at it in his locker when Kara approached him from behind, nipping at his ear. Lee nearly jumped a mile making her guffaw.

"Getting jumpy aren't we?" she mocked.

"Frak Kara, you scared the life out of me," he replied, but he wasn't angry, rather the opposite.

She pouted, "aw, I haven't scared you away for good have I?"

Lee smiled and then walked over to the hatch door, dogging it shut, "Garner hasn't thought to check up on me during the day."

"Well Garner isn't firing on all cylinders. You know Adama, it's been a long time since you've frakked me in your rack."

"That's because it's cramped and only built for one."

Kara pulled a sideways smile, "you know I like a challenge."

And with that they didn't need any more talking or convincing, quickly pacing up to each other and ripping off their uniforms in a frenzied passion, their kisses deep, tongues entwining. They didn't stop until all of their clothing were in a pile on the floor, pushing back until they were in Lee's rack, not caring as Kara knocked her head on the one above.

There was a lack of space, but Kara pushed her hand up against the top of the rack, riding Lee slowly as he lay beneath her, panting for breath. He reached his arms up, stroking up the curve of her hips and up her waist until he could cup one of her breasts with his hand.

Afterwards she lay down blissfully on his chest, feeling the up and down movement of his breathing.

"Frak what Garner says," she sighed into his chest. "Let him throw us in hack, 'cause I'm not stopping this."

Lee stroked her hair with a smile. He was about to agree with her when the sound of the hatch opening echoed through the room along with the sound of voices. He pulled the curtain shut quickly whispering, "frak."

"I thought you dogged the hatch," replied Kara, very aware that their clothing was in a pile outside the rack. They may as well have painted a neon sign on the rack with the word "frakking."

They heard laughter just outside the rack and then Stinger's voice, "didn't anyone warn you Apollo? Cain had all the locks removed from the bunk rooms."

Kara couldn't help the laughter that escaped her lips, burying her head in Lee's chest. He had to admit the situation was kind of funny. "I do now," he called out.

"Who've you got in there sir?" said a voice they recognised as belonging to Narcho.

Stinger answered for him, "well considering I've been looking for the CAG everywhere, I'm guessing I finally found her."

They were rumbled, and the two pilots were unlikely to leave until they came out of hiding. Kara looked at Lee and gave him a kiss before answering them by shoving her hand through the curtain and clicking her fingers. Stinger got her meaning, passing their clothing to her hand. She pulled her cropped top over her head and slipped on her briefs and then exited the rack, standing face to face with Narcho and Stinger, "what?"

"Nothing sir," replied Narcho. "Just not very subtle in the middle of the day that's all."

"Fisk is looking for you sir," said Stinger.

"Great," replied Kara pulling on her duty blues. "Is there a problem Captain?" she asked when the raptor pilot kept looking at her.

"No sir."

"Good, then get back on duty, and I don't expect to hear about this in the Mess room at lunch." Stinger saluted and left whilst Narcho walked to his locker, opening it up with a crash. Kara looked over at him annoyed, before turning back to Lee. "I should go and see what Fisk wants," she said and left swiftly.

She couldn't help the slight panic that gripped her mind as she walked down the corridors, an irrational fear about becoming public. It wasn't that she didn't want to be with Lee, far from it, but the old Kara was still inside her somewhere, telling her to run and fast. She pushed away the feelings, remembering the feel of his touch and smiling inwardly.

Despite having to be near Baltar, she was really looking forward to going to Cloud 9.

_oooo_

Two days later and their raptor docked with Cloud 9. It was evident that despite Kara's warning, the gossip about her and Lee had spread, but at least Garner hadn't found out so at least they had shown some discretion. Generally there was an unwritten rule that what happened in the bunk and mess rooms, stayed in those rooms wherever the commanding officers were concerned.

Kara furtively glanced at the seat opposite her, noticing that Lee was doing the same and smiled. Despite Garner's embargo on sharing quarters they had still found plenty of time to see each other in private.

Security on Cloud 9 was going to be tight, with no fewer than four marines and two officers guarding the President at once.

"So are you two gonna to be making moon eyes at each other for the entire two days?" asked Narcho a little too loudly.

"Frak off Narch," replied Kara, looking away from Lee reluctantly.

Stinger kicked the lieutenant lightly, "watch it Narcho."

"I just want to know if I'm going to be spending two days watching them that's all, makes me miss my old girlfriend," he crossed his arms over his chest and looked the other way.

Everyone went suddenly quiet as the longing was evident on his face. "Cylons?" asked Lee.

"Yep, just like everyone else. She was visiting her grandparents on Tauron at the time." He sniffed briefly and then shrugged the memory of her away. "You two are lucky."

The raptor jolted to a halt as they completed the docking procedure and everyone disembarked. It had been a long time since they had come to Cloud 9 during the "daylight" hours. The sun seemed to be shining and the grass looked radiant. As the four of them waited for Baltar to arrive, they wasted no time, studying the surroundings before finding a secluded area to lie down on the grass. Here they didn't have to worry about being caught by a superior officer and Kara dared to lay with her head resting on Lee's chest.

"I guess you two are going to work together," asked Stinger lazily, lying on his back with his arms behind his head as if he was actually sunbathing.

"Yep," replied Kara. "Is that a problem or do you have a real desire to work with Apollo?"

"No offence Apollo but I'll stick with Narcho."

Lee thought about responding but he kept quiet, focused on stroking back Kara's hair that was splayed across him like a sun rising across the horizon. He was in heaven, the artificial sunlight baking his face. He had lain in the sun with Kara like this before, back on Caprica, but she had been lying on top of Zak. He had dreamt of being with her then and now it was a reality he felt as if he was dreaming.

He wasn't ignorant though, knowing a relationship with Kara would never be a walk in the park. When they were friends she had never been easy to read, her triad face working wonders in social situations as well as during the game. He'd already given up trying to work out her moods.

It had been obvious she wasn't happy about being caught by Stinger and Narcho. But he hadn't quite expected her to be standoffish with him, but then the next day between shifts they had made love slowly in her quarters. Lee made a decision as he lay there on the grass that he would give up trying to guess what was going on in her head.

_oooo_

Baltar arrived on board a couple of hours later as if he was some sort of returning hero. The masses of reporters followed him as he exited the raptor flanked by four marines. Kara and Lee were on the first watch, standing slightly back from the throng. Baltar nodded at them as he walked past with his usual arrogant air. Kara wasn't impressed, turning to Lee and rolling her eyes.

Unlike when they guarded Laura, Baltar had the four marines surrounding him in the auditorium as he addressed the Quorum. Kara preferred it that way, at least standing to the sides she was not in the firing lines this time. Originally they were meant to stand behind him as Baltar didn't want to seem too guarded, but then a well placed bucket of grease thrown by a protester on one of the Tylium ships changed his mind.

The political talk was long and boring. Lee was listening for the most part but Baltar's hypocritical talk about "acting for the good of the fleet" made him want to cringe. He looked across the room, seeing Kara yawn.

Smirking to himself, he moved his communicator to his mouth, "not enjoying Baltar's speech?" He was positioned slightly closer to Baltar than her, with a number of reporters standing around, so he kept his voice low.

"I think I would rather listen to Garner shout at me all day." He could see her yawning, trying to hide it with her communicator.

"It's politics Kara, you should be interested," he said half-heartedly.

"Wake me up when he's finished."

Baltar continued with his self-important speech about the fleet, spewing more and more arrogance as he spoke. Even after the Quorum made a 6 to 6 vote of no-confidence, he continued rambling and even Lee found himself becoming bored. Billy had recently become the representative for Caprica, the youngest ever, and voted most decidedly against the President.

"I can't believe you frakked this guy," joked Lee. He could see Kara's mischievous grin in response even from the other side of the room.

"Mmmmn, I don't think the vice President was too happy when I screamed out your name though."

Lee nearly choked on his own phlegm, starting to cough uncontrollably and drawing far too much attention to himself. He could hear Kara's laughter through his ear-piece as even Baltar stopped his speech and looked over at him, turning back when Lee raised a hand to say he was okay.

Spluttering slightly, he managed to get himself under control, "seriously?"

"Why do you think he was pissed off with you the next day? You should have seen his face, it was priceless."

"I'd rather not think of a post-coital looking Baltar."

"Aw don't worry Lee, I was _literally_ thinking about you the entire time."

"You could have told me about this back then you know."

"You were busy yelling at me remember. Besides I really wanted to forget about him as quickly as possible."

Lee glanced at the reporters to make sure they were not overhearing, "so was fantasy sex with me just as good?"

Kara laughed, "nowhere near. Hey Adama you still owe me a date by the way."

Lee smiled warmly at the memory. He had asked her out on a date just before the cylons had taken them. He'd promised to take her to the Rising Star, a promise which he had broken. "I may not be able to manage the Rising Star tonight."

He could see Kara shrug, "here will do."

"You know, I am the son of a newly promoted Admiral and I can pull some strings to get us a room."

"Now you're talking Adama, with no kids or superior officers to worry about," her voice was low and sultry, "we could make as much noise as we want."

"Frak Kara, are you trying to make me embarrass myself again?" he replied, feeling himself starting to harden.

"I can help you with that if you want," obviously seeing him pace slightly from side to side.

"Not helping Kara."

Thankfully Baltar finished his speech and started to walk out of the auditorium, his bravado not quite so confident anymore. Kara and Lee met up in the middle and walked behind him. As the press descended they stood side by side, their fingers gently touching so no-one could see. The contact was enough to send tingles up their arms, which was definitely not helping Lee' growing situation.

"You're coming out of your pants," she whispered, her little finger hooking around his.

"Whose fault is that?"

"Sure you don't want me to help?"

Lee suppressed his laughter, "I think you've done enough."

It was another agonising twenty minutes before Stinger and Narcho took over and they were relieved. Lee had quickly grabbed her hand as they walked away, ducking into a secluded alcove. Their kisses were passionate, their hands entangling into their hair as they pushed back against a wall.

"Gods you drive me crazy," moaned Lee in between kisses. He was fully hard now, pushing against the zipper of his fly.

They were carefree as they ducked deeper into a tree-lined enclosure and Kara lowered Lee's zipper, taking him in hand before lowering down to her knees.

They were completely unaware that they had been seen ducking away, didn't see and didn't care as Tom Zarek walked slowly away, shaking his head.

_oooo_

It had been years since they had seen so much food on one plate. The rations on board the Battlestars had been bad _before_ the end of the worlds and had gradually depleted over time. High protein and carbohydrates were the usual, forgoing taste for necessity. But here on Cloud 9 they actually had meat and something resembling a vegetable.

"Where did they get all of this?" asked Kara, noticing that everyone in the restaurant had the same meal. Before the attacks this would have been a top restaurant with a "to die for" menu.

"They're actually breeding livestock down on the surface," replied Lee taking a large mouthful. "It's not too bad, actually has some flavour."

Kara pushed her food around on her plate uncertainly, "seems wrong to be eating this much."

"Seriously, Kara? I've never known somebody to shuffle down as much as food as you," replied Lee with a smile, remembering a time when he gone on a double-date with her, Zak and a girl he was seeing back then. His girlfriend had eaten half a salad, whereas Kara had wolfed down a fully loaded plate in half the time it took him to eat his.

Their date wasn't perfect. Technically they were back on duty again until midnight but luckily Baltar had chosen to take in a meal with a group of ladies and some Quorum members. Kara and Lee had seized the opportunity to eat together, clothed in their dress greys it was as if they had gone out properly.

Kara took a scoop of food and swallowed it down, "okay, not too bad, not sure what it tastes of though."

"No, and I don't think you're supposed to ask."

Kara laughed as she took another couple of mouthfuls. "So, pretend I care about these so called politics, what happens now the vote has split?"

Lee scrunched up his nose as she spoke with her mouth half full. Her bad habits really hadn't changed a bit and it made him love her even more. "They vote again tomorrow, if that's a draw then their application fails and Baltar's free to continue frakking up the fleet."

Kara glanced over at the President, "look at him, he looks as if he's won already. If the frakker isn't talking _to _himself, he's talking _about_ himself. Did I ever tell you of the time I caught him jerking off in his lab?"

Lee nearly choked on a piece of meat, "you're kidding me?"

"Wish I were, he was talking to his phantom friend whilst he was doing it."

"Are you trying to put me off my food?" he said, pushing his plate away, suddenly not hungry any more.

Kara guffawed, "sorry." She held out her fork piled with food as a peace offering. Without caring if anyone was watching Lee leant over and took the fork into his mouth, seeing out of the corner of his eye that Baltar's table had turned towards them. Lee tried to smile innocently, wondering what they were looking at.

They drew back slightly, realising they were being too obvious. They finished their meal talking quietly until Baltar decided he'd had enough and wanted to go dancing. They followed him up to the large ball room, watching him as he walked in with a woman on each arm and headed straight for the dance floor.

Kara nearly stopped in her tracks when she entered the room, seeing a group of crew members from the Galactica gathering at the bar. She spotted Dee straight away mingling in the middle and the woman spotted her too. Kara rarely felt jealous, but the petty officer looked gorgeous, dressed in a long gown and fixed up hair. She suddenly felt very subconscious about her appearance, brushing her hand against a mark from dinner.

Lee waved briefly across to the bar and then held out his arm, saying with a cheesy smile, "would you like to dance?"

Kara felt her cheeks blush slightly as she hooked her arm into his, "pity I'm not in a dress this time."

They walked out onto the dance floor and linked arms with Lee placing a hand on top of her hip. "You look beautiful."

Kara blushed again, berating herself being so weak. Only Lee Adama made her feel so nervous, part of her feeling that she didn't deserve to have the heart of such a man.

"You two just don't know how to keep a low profile do you?" said Stinger walking over with Narcho at his side. They too were wearing their dress greys.

"What are you doing here," asked Lee. "You're not on duty until midnight."

"Decided to let the two of you have some time to yourselves, besides there's a lot of ladies here tonight."

They didn't want to argue back, dashing across the dance floor and out towards the room Lee had pulled strings to secure for them. It was down a maze of corridors that all looked the same. They took their time, occasionally stopping to share kisses, the passion building up and up.

"Holy frak this room's huge," shouted out Kara when they finally reached their destination. She searched around like an excited schoolgirl. "They've got a huge bath tub!"

"Really?" asked Lee running into the bathroom to join her. "I can't remember the last time I had a bath," he added as Kara bent over to turn on the taps. He couldn't resist, encircling her waist with his arms, pulling her to him and kissing the back of her neck.

She twisted in his arms, turning to face him. All apprehension was forgotten as she looked into his eyes, feeling only happiness as she kissed him slowly, their tongues entwining. They made short work of their clothing until they were completely naked in each other's arms.

"Gods you're perfect," said Lee as he stroked a hand down her chest.

"Mmmmn, what's your favourite part?" she purred in response.

Lee gave her a quick appraisal before smiling and stroking a hand down her cheek, "you're smile."

It was the right answer, and he was rewarded with a gentle shove backwards into the room and onto the large double bed. She straddled him slowly, biting her lip as she sunk down on top of him, closing her eyes in ecstasy.

"Gods Kara," he moaned as slowly she rocked her hips, taking him in deep. His hands stroked up the curve of her waist and up the sides of her breasts, stroking his thumbs across her nipples making her gasp and rock her hips a little faster.

She felt the waves of pleasure washing through her body, building and building until at last she felt the explosion rock her body, gasping out "Oh...Lee!"

Hearing his name being cried out, Lee couldn't hold it in any longer, coming inside of her hard. He closed his eyes as the pleasure washed through him, relaxing back onto the bed. He felt the weight of Kara lift off him as she hopped down off the bed. Opening his eyes he saw her standing radiant in front of him before pulling him up of the bed and into the bathroom.

"Come on, I want this bath."

They both thanked the Gods that the fleet had found a stable water source as they dipped their feet into the perfectly lukewarm water, soaking into the bubbles. The tub was large enough for both of them to fit comfortably. Kara sat with Lee in front so she could rap her legs around him and pull him to her. She nibbled at his ear, taking in the surroundings of the perfectly dim lit room. No-one had ever treated her like this, as if she was special. The sinking feeling that she wasn't good enough crept back in.

"Lee can I ask you something?"

He leant his head round so he could see her, with an adorably eager look on his face, "sure."

"Why me?" she asked seriously.

"What do you mean?"

"You could probably have any number of women in this fleet."

"I doubt that," he replied obviously trying to keep the mood light, but she could see the panic in his eyes.

"Trust me Lee, the Pegasus has been inundated with requests for your _donation_."

"What are you trying to say Kara?"

She took a pause, rubbing her tongue across her teeth, slightly ashamed at having brought up the subject. But then she had promised herself she would try and be honest with him. "I mean you're a good person Lee, the best, so why have you fallen for the foul mouthed problem pilot, you could have anyone. Take that ballroom today, full of beautiful, well presented women who would make a perfect little wife." She couldn't believe she had used the "w" word. Lee turned in the water to face her fully. _Gods he looked amazing, built like Apollo himself. _"What do you see in me?" she added.

He chuckled slightly to himself, which wasn't quite the reaction she was expecting, thinking that she had managed to frak up again. "Well, you're not half bad to look at," he said in a mocking voice making Kara smile and roll her eyes playfully. "And you _are_ the top gun in the fleet and fill a cropped top nicely." The last comment earned him a playful slap. His face then went serious, cupping her face with a wet hand, "or maybe I just love you."

Kara felt as if she could burst into tears, her eyes moistening slightly. "Really?"

"You had me from the first moment you opened that front door remember? I love everything about you, even the parts that drive me crazy." He leant forward and gave her a deep kiss, "I love you Kara Thrace."

Kara smiled, a tear escaping her eye, as she leant forward into him and deepened the kiss taking him into her arms, and pushing away her fears into oblivion.

_oooo_

The following morning she could still feel her cheeks glowing, holding her happiness deep inside next to her love for their children. She had missed them over night and was looking forward to seeing them again. She couldn't believe in a couple of weeks they would be turning one.

After getting the evening off, they had agreed to pull a double on their next protection duty and had been following Baltar around all day. Their furtive glances at each other getting them through the next few hours.

Unfortunately it was a good day for Baltar too, the Quorum's vote coming out at another draw. The President was home and dry and looked very pleased with himself as he walked towards the raptor, seeming to look into nothingness as he walked.

Kara and Lee met with Stinger and Narcho in the hanger deck. Today they were all back to their duty blues.

"Who gets to take the President back planet side?" asked Narcho.

"Thanks for volunteering Narch," replied Kara.

"No way, that's not fair, we covered for you yesterday."

"And made up for it today whilst you two went swimming and sunbathing."

"Hey," interrupted Lee. "We'll draw straws," he said grabbing a fallen stick he had grabbed from the gardens. "Short stick has to go with Baltar." He turned around and snapped one before holding them out evenly in his hand. Each person took a stick.

"Aw frak," moaned Kara as she lost. "See you in a couple of hours."

She waved off at Lee and walked grumpily onto the raptor, sitting herself in the front with Sykes who was piloting at the helm. "Afternoon sir."

"Just get on with it Sykes."

She had to endure Baltar's endless babble for two days and now she was in a confined space with him too. The raptor was full, with Zarek, two marines she didn't recognise fully and Billy who was the new Quorum representative for Caprica. All the latter wanted was a lift back to New Caprica and looked as pissed off about it as Kara.

Kara rested her head back against the seat, closing her eyes briefly and thinking about the previous night. Lee was in love with her. The feeling warmed her heart, making her smile as they disembarked.

Opening her eyes she saw nothing but the vacuum of space and the protective nebula. "Frak Sykes, where are you going?"

"New Caprica as ordered sir."

"Well don't you think we should have a planet in front of us, or do I need to teach you basic flight again?"

"I know what I'm doing sir."

His voice was even and calm, turning the raptor towards a number of ships.

Kara sighed, she hadn't realised Sykes was this big of an idiot, "frak, just change the controls to me, I'd rather not spend six hours getting there."

Glancing away briefly she heard the distinctive click of a safety-catch suddenly disengaging, not having enough time to react as Sykes levelled his gun up at her face.

"What the frak are you doing?"

"Raise your hands Starbuck and walk to the back of the raptor, _now_."

"No frakking way," she replied, turning her head towards the other occupants. The marines and Zarek were both aiming their guns at Baltar and Billy.

Turning back Sykes flexed his gun, "I'm not frakking around sir, raise them now or I'll blow your brains out across this raptor."

Looking into his cold eyes, surrounded by armed and ready guns, she raised her hands behind her head interlacing her fingers. Glancing out of the window she saw where they were going.

Looming ahead of them was the Astral Queen.


	43. Trapped

Chapter 42

The Astral Queen loomed ahead, unwelcoming and somewhat sinister looking as it orbited New Caprica. Kara laced her fingers behind her head, staring down the barrel of Sykes' gun. She wasn't afraid, but she was pissed off, her displeasure written across her face.

"Sykes..."

He flexed his gun, "shut the frak up Starbuck and move to the back."

"How about you remove that gun from my face first?"

He chuckled slightly, "nice try."

Kara glared at him, cursing him with her eyes, when suddenly a hand grabbed her arm, pulling her forcefully out of the chair and through the gap to the back. The motion was so quick and so strong that she lost her footing between the seats, stumbling as the marine shoved her over towards Baltar and Billy. The former was complaining, demanding that Zarek tell him what he was doing.

The Vice President motioned for them to sit, "please, we have no intention of harming any of you. This should be a temporary situation and I ask that you remain calm."

Kara looked on, her fingers still laced behind her head, glaring at Zarek as one of the marines patted her down, removing her holstered gun and the knife she always strapped around her ankle. She was all too aware of the many rifles aimed at the back of her head.

She watched as Baltar asked Zarek what he was planning to do only to be made to sit on the floor facing the wall whilst one of the marines yanked Billy's arm and made him do the same, which he did without question. Kara stood stoic. She glared at the Vice President, her annoyance still evident across her face. She seemed to unnerve him slightly, despite his being armed and protected by two marines.

"You too," he said calmly, flexing his gun slightly.

"You may want to check the safety on that," she replied making him retract the gun to take a look. Seeing that the safety was already off he quickly aimed it again making her smirk as she turned to sit with her other captors and face the wall. As she suspected Zarek was a weak man, always making his minions do all the dirty work, really he was an amateur.

Baltar's breathing seemed to be quickening slightly as he turned his head slightly towards her, "it may be an idea if you didn't wind up the people with the guns."

Kara breathed out heavily and rolled her eyes. Ignoring what was going on behind her as their captors conspired together, she pondered her own situation. How the frak had she missed what was going on? There had been clues in the past few weeks. Members of the Pegasus' crew had been constantly restless, people murdered and mysterious Mess room brawls. But she had been too wrapped up in her own happiness to notice, not that she regretted any minute, but now she was trapped. She knew that she was just a victim of being in the wrong place at the wrong time and the real target was Baltar. She and Billy were just incidental captives and that put them in a very bad situation.

It was going to be a very long couple of hours.

_oooo_

Lee entered his father's quarters, smiling when he saw the old man sitting at his desk with Lena and Joseph sitting on either leg as he showed them his model ship. He had been building it since before the end of the Colonies and it fascinated his grandchildren.

"This type of ship used to sail on the ocean," he said to them. "You've never seen an ocean before but many of our home planets used to be covered in oceans. See these big sails, the wind used to make the ship move."

"Gwah?" asked Lena pointing at the front.

"That's the front of the ship."

Adama looked up at Lee as he walked up to the desk. As soon as they saw him, Lena and Joseph reached out their pudgy hands wanting a hug. He had been away for less than two days, but that was long enough for them to miss him.

"I think they've had enough of this old man," said Adama.

"Never," replied Lee knowing that the babies were always excited to see their grandfather. "Were they a handful?"

"Not really, Laura helped out." Lee couldn't help but be a little shocked, raising an eyebrow slightly. "She was visiting Cottle for a check-up." Lee raised his hands to indicate that he wasn't insinuating anything, though he suspected his father was crazy about the former President. Lee leant over and took hold of Joseph who was stretching out his arms and desperate for attention.

"Where's Kara?" asked Adama, still holding Lena on his knee.

"She drew the short straw and is escorting Baltar's raptor back to New Caprica." He bounced Joseph on his knees holding onto his little pudgy hands.

"How are you two doing now?"

Lee suppressed the large grin he wanted to pull, "we're doing good." He and Kara had agreed to keep their relationship under wraps for the time being. He was about to add something when suddenly the phone rang out.

Adama hoisted Lena onto his hip and then walked over, picking up the receiver. "Adama...I'll be right there." He hung up quickly, evidently annoyed. "We're needed in the CIC immediately."

"What's wrong?" asked Lee following his father out, struggling to keep hold of Joseph who was wriggling around.

"We've lost communication with Baltar's raptor and it's diverted away from the planet."

They quickly dropped off the twins at the day-care room and dashed to the CIC which was bustling with activity. Dee was busy making repeated requests for the raptor to respond.

"They launched before my raptor," said Lee as they walked over to central consol where Tigh was standing, "I heard Ka...Starbuck over the comm system and everything was fine. There are two marines on board."

Adama looked unconvinced. He glanced briefly up at the dradis before turning back to Tigh. "Tell me everything from the beginning."

"The raptor took off normally," said Tigh. "Starbuck transmitted their destination signal. They seemed to be on target for the first ten minutes then they went off course. They're not answering us. The CAP has been deployed to their position."

"Fire a warning shot across the bow."

Tigh nodded and transmitted the message to the CAP. Kat was all too happy to be the volunteer, communicating afterwards that the ship still hadn't stopped.

Lee had a really bad feeling. If Kara was still in control of the raptor, then there was no way she wouldn't have answered by now. There were so many possibilities as to what had happened, none of them good. There could have been a depressurisation, in which case all of them were dead or someone could have taken over the ship.

There was a distinct crackle that echoed over the comm system and then Lee heard music to ears as Kara's voice resounded around the CIC. "Galactica, Starbuck, copy you over."

Adama grabbed up the telephone comm, his face stuck in a permanent frown, "Starbuck this is Galactica actual, where the frak do you think you are going?"

"Oh you know me sir, fancied a little detour."

Lee could tell from her voice that everything was not okay, she was angry and not portraying her usual cheerful banter.

Adama also was not fooled. He thought for a moment before saying, "your drifting, is your axial position altered?" It was a code for asking whether or not a pilot was under duress. The CIC was silent as they waited for an answer which seemed to take forever to come.

"That would be most definitely sir, by four degrees." The sound of a hand slapping flesh echoed throughout the room followed by the sound of muffled voices and a struggle before the comm line went dead.

Lee desperately wanted to leap forward and grab the comm, call them back and offer a deal, but he couldn't. Adama was furious, barking out orders to various crew members.

"So she's under duress?" asked Tigh.

"She answered the code," replied Adama. "By four of the occupants. I'm guessing the other hostages must be the President and Billy Keikeya."

"So that leaves Zarek and members of our own crew?" asked Lee, shocked that their own crew mates would do something like this. His father didn't answer, his face showing the hurt from the betrayal. "What do we do now?"

"We let them land," replied Adama. "We cannot risk the life of the President."

"And Kara?" added Lee, his voice full of concern and panic.

"We keep our heads."

Lee felt deflated as he watched the blip from her raptor continue its course before merging with Astral Queen and disappearing.

_oooo_

She could still feel the sting across her cheek as the raptor docked, a dull burning from when the marine had struck her with the back of his hand. It hurt like hell and was probably already starting to bruise. It had been Sykes who had recognised Adama's code, raising the alarm as she answered. Despite the pain however, it had been worth it. At least the Galactica now knew what was going on.

Unfortunately though, Zarek hadn't been satisfied with her just lacing her arms behind her head and had her placed in cuffs, fortunately in front of her body.

They were frogmarched together through the Astral Queen. It had been about two years since she had stepped foot on this ship, walking through that airlock and into Lee's arms. The shock when he had kissed her and said he loved her. Fond memories that were now blighted as Sykes seized her arm, pushing her along faster.

The Astral Queen was still considered a prison ship, home to a number of inmates who had committed crimes in the fleet. Kara recognised Palladino as she was taken through the still occupied area, who stared at her from his cell. Back when Zarek had taken Lee and a few others hostage many years ago, there had been many inmates. They were all gone now, but it was clear that his influence still prevailed. The few wardens stood aside and let the new captives be taken through to another area where there were fewer cells.

"Welcome to my old home," said Zarek and motioned for the marines to bring their captives forward.

Foolishly Sykes released his grip on her arm slightly. Seizing the opportunity, she clasped her cuffed hands together and swung back her elbow hard into his throat sending him spluttering to the floor. A number of arms grabbed her within seconds, kicking out her legs and partially dragging her into one of cells. Baltar and Billy were guided into adjacent cells on either side.

Her cheek was still throbbing from the raptor and now she could feel bruises forming all over her body, but it was worth it to see Sykes still coughing on the floor. She rolled her eyes as she lay down on the uncomfortable cot, realising that it was next to Baltar's who was already muttering to himself. If Zarek didn't kill him, she might have to.

"I'll say again," said Zarek from the other side of the bars. "I have no intention of harming any of you, but try to escape and you will be killed." He seemed to address the last towards Kara.

"Then why are we here?" shouted out Baltar.

"For the good of the fleet," he answered. "Somehow the Quorum couldn't decide about you yesterday and I intend to correct that."

He walked away, flanked by a number of his goons and the two marines. Sykes managed to drag himself to his feet, still holding his throat and skulked away.

Kara sighed heavily on her bunk, trying to block out Baltar's mutterings. She turned her head towards Billy who was sitting up on his bed with his head in his hands.

"Hey," she said. She hadn't really spoken to him since Cloud 9 when Lee had been on a "date" with Dee. He had been a bit of a mess then, pining over same person Kara wanted nothing more than to hit in the face. He had come onto her after drinking a wide mixture of drinks. "You get over that hangover?"

"I threw up in Laura Roslin's tent."

Kara stifled a snigger, "oops." She looked over at him, seeing that he was buried in his hands again. "Hey, I'll get you out of this."

"I'm just trying to work out how the same thing could happen to the same guy twice."

Kara had to concede the point. This was the second time Billy had been held captive here. "Look, just sit tight like last time, people like you have a tendency to get shot."

"Great, thanks Starbuck, that's just what I've always wanted to hear."

The cells fell quiet, each person contemplating their situation, the only sound coming from various footsteps of people who were guarding their cells. It was coming up to evening and Kara had not slept much in the past few days. She yawned, looking from side to side at her fellow captives. They both looked anxious. As much as she was concerned about her predicament and missed Lee and their babies, she wasn't panicked. She was trained to deal with such a situation and knew the importance of staying calm.

Eyeing her surroundings she took in every guard, every turning and door within her eyeshot. She would be damned if she was just going to lie there and let events unfold around her.

_oooo_

Lee paced around the CIC with impatience. It had been hours since the raptor had disappeared and it was now 2200 hours with no word, no ransom, nothing. Adama was still watching the dradis monitor, waiting for someone to contact him with their demands.

They had worked out that Zarek must be behind the kidnapping with the two marines and probably Sykes having mutinied against the fleet. Events from the past few weeks were starting to make sense. Cooper was a good friend of Sykes' and had been part of the brawl that had ensued in the Pegasus' Mess. He was meant to have been on raptor duty for Baltar's tour.

Lee clenched his jaw, opening and closing his hand into a fist in an attempt to control his anger. He wanted nothing more than to travel to the brig on the Pegasus and start cracking some heads until he got all of the information he needed.

"You're starting to wear a hole into the floor," said Adama gruffly.

"I can't just stand here and do nothing," he replied with anger. "I can get a team over there in thirty minutes..."

"No."

"Last time..."

"Last time was different. Zarek was a prisoner himself then, now he has professional help, contacts and weapons. If we go there we'll be seen and the prisoners most likely killed."

"Well why don't I take the Blackbird over, they'll never see..."

"Lee," shouted his father said in a voice he hadn't heard since he was berated as a child.

The entire CIC turned in his direction, their eyes knowing. He turned away, pacing over to the tactical station, kicking the edge with his foot. He could feel his father's gaze burning at his back.

"Sir," came the voice of Dee through the silence. "Sir we have an incoming message from the Astral Queen."

"Put it through to actual."

"He will only talk to the entire CIC sir."

Adama muttered, clearly pissed off and nodded to the petty officer. There was a short crackle followed by the voice of Zarek.

"Good evening Galactica," he said with a tone of smugness.

Adama raised an eyebrow, his hand lent against the dradis consol. "I'll make this clear to you only once Zarek. I do not, nor will I ever, negotiate with terrorists."

"Who says I am a terrorist?" replied the voice. "I'm a political idealist, ensuring the future of the fleet."

"Any person who takes the elected President of the Colonies hostage in order to fulfil his own political agenda is in my book a terrorist and you will be treated as one."

There was a pause before Zarek continued, "And I'll make this clear to you. I intend to make President Baltar account for his crimes against the fleet, for the people who have suffered under his regime. If you attempt to approach or come aboard this ship I will start killing hostages, there are plenty of people currently taking up residence here."

Lee flexed his fingers as the mutterings erupted around the CIC, which Adama stopped with one gesture of his arm.

"I'll reiterate," said the Admiral. "I will not negotiate with a terrorist and the fleet will not hear what you have to say."

He could hear the short sound of laughter, "we'll see. I have some very interesting new guests here."

Lee couldn't help the "Zarek," that came out of his lips which was returned with a glare from Adama. He motioned for him to leave the CIC but he stood his ground.

The short laughter could be heard again, "I thought the son of Zeus would be there. Did you enjoy your trip to Cloud 9?"

Lee couldn't help himself, "Zarek, I swear if you..."

He didn't get the chance to answer before the arm of a marine circled his neck, another pinning his arm and dragged him backwards.

"Zarek!"

He was dragged away out of the CIC, the marines still half dragging him down the corridor to the shock of onlookers.

"Get the frak off me," he yelled struggling like mad. "That's a godsdamned order."

"Sorry sir," said one of the marines. "We're under the orders of the Admiral, who far outranks you sir."

It was useless to keep struggling against the highly trained marines but he did so all the way to the brig before being dumped unceremoniously onto his ass. He only had time to pace around a number of times and bang on the bars repeatedly before the marines came back and escorted him out. This time he went quietly until they left him just inside Adama's quarters.

His father was sitting at his desk and walking up to him, Lee felt as if he had been transported back to his childhood. The dreaded walk, which he knew was going to end in him being in trouble.

"Dad..."

"Sit down," interrupted Adama, his voice stern. Lee obeyed straight away. They stared at each other for a few moments before the old man's face softened slightly. "You messed up," he said. "You gave a terrorist leverage."

Lee nodded in understanding, ashamed of himself.

"But I get the feeling he knew all already. How long?"

"Sorry?"

"How long has something been going on between you and Kara?"

Lee looked down, feeling that this was going to get worse than the lecture he'd been given in the Pegasus' brig. It was useless to try and lie; his actions had already betrayed his feelings, "since Lena was in lifestation."

Adama nodded, "and Cloud 9, which Zarek referred to?"

"We weren't exactly subtle."

"Whilst you were on duty and representing the Colonial Fleet?"

Lee stared at his hands, realising that they hadn't exactly been behaving professionally, but then again he wouldn't have changed any of it. "Yes sir."

"Neither of you have been very subtle for a long time, being late for meetings, disappearing during your shifts. Do you really think I don't hear of everything that happens on my ships?"

This was definitely worse than the brig lecture. Lee shrugged, "we've been happy."

"I don't doubt that and I don't give a frak if Commander Fisk complains, we need relationships to keep this fleet going. What I do care about is two of my chief officers losing perspective. You are both Colonial officers, your sole duty is to protect the fleet, regardless of the sacrifices you may have to make."

Lee reflected for a moment, "I don't know if I can."

"Then you should step away."

"And if it were my kids who were in danger, would you make me step away then?"

"Children are different, they don't understand the risks, Kara does."

Lee stopped staring at his hands and looked up at his father, "I love her dad."

"I know son, but you need to keep your head. She'll be fine. If anyone can get themselves out of a hostage situation, it will be Kara."

Lee nodded.

"Now get out of here, you can stay in guests quarters tonight with Lena and Joseph. I already have Helo and Kat formulating a rescue plan involving the Blackbird."

Lee nodded and stood up from the table, leaving the room without another word. He had never really talked much to his father when he was growing up. He had always been the man he had hero worshipped from afar, wanting to be him, to live up to his expectations. Lee had lost that worship now that the Worlds had been destroyed, but he had gained something more, a father and a part of him would always be thankful for that.

And his father was right, he needed to keep his head.

_oooo_

Through her training at the academy, Kara had acquired an uncanny ability to fall asleep anywhere and despite the uncomfortable cot bed and being in handcuffs in a stuffy cell, she had fallen asleep quickly. Dreaming of a beach far away where she and Lee were helping their children build towers in the sand, the sound of laughter brought her warmth.

The disadvantage of the academy training however, was that in these situations her body was always on alert, ready to jump to action if necessary, which made her a light sleeper. Her happy dreams were abruptly cut through by the sound of a voice talking nearby. She jerked away and yawned, rolling her eyes when she realised it was Baltar who had woken her up.

She felt uncomfortably hot. Unable to remove her duty-blues jacket due to the cuffs she had to make do with undoing the buttons. Her tanks underneath were starting to get sodden from the sweat.

"What do you mean?" said Baltar seemingly to thin air, his Aerlon accent prominent. "And you really think I am in the position to do that do you?"

Kara sighed and rolled onto her side so she was facing Billy's cell. He was sitting up and looking wide awake. He glanced at her as she rolled before turning his attention back to the door of the cell. The poor kid didn't seem to be doing too well.

"And what do you suggest I do?" said Baltar to his phantom just as Kara was about to fall asleep again.

She huffed and rolled back onto her back, "Will you shut. The frak. Up!"

"Sorry?" asked the President his attention now drawn to her.

"Gods, you never let up! Who the frak are you talking to anyway? Little imaginary toasters?"

"Wh...what?"

Kara rolled her eyes and turned onto her side again, the last thing she wanted to know was what was going on in Baltar's head.

"I seriously doubt...what are you talking about?"

"Frak!" It was useless trying to sleep and Kara shuffled her body up to sitting. "You know for a genius you are really frakking crazy."

"I prefer the term eccentric."

"Whatever. So have you always been crazy, or only since the cylons came?"

Baltar paused and then changed the subject. "So when are your people going to come and rescue us?"

Kara shrugged as much as her handcuffs would allow, "if I know the old man then he's already told Zarek that he won't negotiate with a terrorist."

"That's it?" asked Baltar incredulously.

"I'm surprised he hasn't blown up the ship yet."

"And you're happy just to sit back and let him do that?"

"I don't know if you've actually realised, but I'm locked in a cage in frakking handcuffs, surrounded by armed people. But please do tell me, genius, if you have a plan." Despite her words however, she was of course formulating a plan. But the actions of those guarding her were uncertain so a lot of her plan would need to be thought up on the spot. Her cuffs were least of her worries.

"I'm surprised Major Adama hasn't already forced his way on board."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Please. Don't make the genius have to explain that it's obvious you two are more than just friends and colleagues."

She didn't deny it. "Lee knows what's good for him."

"Meaning?"

"That he knows better than to be an idiot and try and come here like some frakking hero." Though knowing Lee the opposite was probably true

Baltar snorted briefly, "Yes I'm sure."

Kara rolled her eyes and laid back down on her cot, trying in vain to get comfortable.

"So that's it, you're just going to lie there and let Zarek kill me?"

"Yep, saves me from doing it."

"Great, well that's just great."

Kara sighed, scrunching up into the foetal position. She was extremely uncomfortable, her wrists chafing and sore from the cuffs. She was in no mood to listen to Baltar, but the man just wasn't getting the hint.

"I have been trying to help the fleet you know."

"Sorry, are you talking to me or the phantom again?"

"New Caprica won't survive until we start procreating."

Kara shuffled on her side. There was a bed spring which was particularly sticking out and uncomfortable. She twisted her body so she could just reach it under the thin mattress and started to bend it back and forth repeatedly. "Perhaps people need a bit more than just orders to start frakking."

"Like what?"

"Like some hope," she sighed as the spring jabbed her in the finger and she lost her grip temporarily. "When the cylons came we had a goal, finding Earth. Now people have nothing but the reality that they will probably die out anyway regardless of whether or not the cylons find us."

"They're becoming stagnated?"

"Exactly," she replied only half listening, smiling in victory as the piece of metal snapped free.

"We need to continue searching for Earth," he stated in response.

Looking down at the piece of metal she tucked it into the lining of her jacket. "I'm not your military advisor, but like I said, people need hope." Ignoring Baltar's continued conversation she closed her eyes and pictured the set up of the room, pretending to sleep. The two guards were on two hour rotations. Most of them were obviously amateurs and stayed in the one position, but still she would need to act fast.

It was a couple of hours later when she opened her eyes, having refrained from falling asleep. It had to be about 0300 hours now and Billy was fast asleep on his cot. She pretended to roll over in her sleep and faced Baltar who mercifully had also gone to sleep. Carefully she fed the piece of metal wire out of the lining of her jacket and painstakingly started twisting it about in the lock of her cuffs until finally she heard a small click and they came loose, liberating her hands. She rubbed at her sore wrists, grimacing at the red scratches that encircled them.

Twisting her head towards the guards she nearly laughed when she saw they were asleep. Definitely amateur. All she needed was a gun and to get out of her frakking cell. Using the piece of metal she set about trying the lock as quietly as she could. If she thought the cuffs were difficult, this was even harder and she found herself wishing that the academy had taught them these sorts of survival techniques rather than just dumping them in the middle of nowhere with nothing but emergency gear.

Glancing up at the guards frequently she smiled as the lock finally clicked and opened up. The guards had not awoken but she heard a shuffling on one of the cots. She turned to see Baltar sitting up. Pressing a finger to her lips she indicated for him to get back down, which thankfully he did without question.

Keeping low she ducked out of the cell, closing it shut behind her and sped down the corridor until she could duck behind some other cells. It was only then that she realised the flaw in her plan. She hadn't planned beyond this point and had nowhere to go. Taking out the guards was too risky, one was bound to raise the alarm or shoot her before she could finish the job. Cursing under her breath she continued down the corridor. It was at least worth trying to escape though.

She had barely managed to make her way down another corridor when the alarms sounded.

"Frak," she cursed, ducking sideways into what looked to be a storage area. Sprinting as fast as she could, which wasn't her speciality, she headed for cover. The sound of heavy footsteps and voices neared. Using various storage containers she ducked and dodged out of view, hearing a group of armed guards go past.

"She can't have gotten far, she's unarmed too," said one of them.

Kara had faced worse odds. Glancing around the corner she saw the area was clear. She figured she must be nearing the hangar deck where she should be able to find a weapon and then fight her way back to Baltar and Billy.

She dashed across the silent room alone.

The blow came hard and fast at her side as the marine rammed into her, knocking her to the floor. The air blew completely out of her lungs as she skidded across the floor with one of the treacherous marines on top of her. She had been taken completely off guard. Rolling over she attempted to fight back, but she knew she was frakked as the marine was joined by other guards, each holding weapons.

The strikes came quickly to her body as they subdued her struggles with force, knocking the wind out of her again, the pain radiating through her body even as she curled up into a defensive ball.

"That's enough," came a voice finally and the blow stopped. But then she was pulled up by her hair until she was up on her knees.

Facing Zarek, she felt the warm blood stream out of her nose and awaited her fate.

TBC...


	44. Trapped Part Two

Chapter 43

Kara had no idea how long she had been unconscious for as she awoke in another cell on the floor. She was no longer with the others and her hands were now cuffed behind her back. She remembered seeing Zarek standing in front of her, waiting for him to make his move before the blow came to the back of her head, then everything went dark. Now she had a splitting headache, but she couldn't reach up to see if there was a bump or worse blood.

She cursed herself for being too impulsive. She should have waited until she had more of a plan, but then again there had been too much uncertainty to formulate a good plan. Now at least she knew a bit more of the layout of the Astral Queen, even if she didn't know exactly where she was now. And, despite the cot being removed from the cell, she would probably sleep easier without Baltar's incessant talking.

She managed to shuffle uncomfortably onto her side into a position so her arms stopped falling asleep and curled up into a slight ball. But her arms began to tingle anyway as she fell into an uncomfortable and restless sleep only to be awoken a couple of hours later by a loud bang against the door to her cell. Kara jolted, pushing herself up and turned towards the cell door.

Zarek was standing in the now open door and staring down at her.

Shuffling to a sitting position Kara glared back at him. Her head was still throbbing and she could feel dried blood sticking to her skin above her lip. A dull burning throbbed through her nose and she knew she must look a state.

"What the frak do you want?" she said after a few moments of staring him down.

"I told you that I had no desire to hurt any of you, but then you went and tried to escape."

"And I was really going to trust the word of a convicted terrorist whose method of spreading his message usually involves blowing up buildings."

Zarek blinked slowly, a slight smile forming on his lips before he responded. "Sometimes people have to be sacrificed for the greater good."

"Yeah, everyone else except you huh?"

"I've been fighting for people's rights before you were even born." Kara rolled her eyes, readjusting her hands behind her back. It would be possible to free herself from the cuffs and strangle the idiot that stood before her, but the chance of getting killed soon afterwards was too high. "I'm a freedom..."

"I know exactly what you think you are, I read your book in college." Zarek looked taken aback. "What? Surprised that a hot-shot pilot like me went to college?"

"I'm a little surprised you can even read." She didn't rise to the bait, knowing that he was trying to rile her up. "And what did you think of my book?"

"That it was the biggest pile of self-righteous crap I've ever read."

"Really? Most people admire me for it."

"Well most people are idiots."

"One of those people was Major Adama."

"Was that before or after you held him hostage?" Kara smiled bitterly, "look I've seen what's left behind because of your actions. My mother was stationed on Sagittaron for nine months when I was a kid to help repair your damage. If you really want to sacrifice yourself for the greater good, join the Colonial fleet, actually put your ass on the line for once."

Zarek nodded, not in agreement but mere acknowledgement. "Well I'm afraid it's your ass on the line for now. I'm sorry."

Kara scowled as he stepped outside the cell and nodded to the two marines who had been on the raptor. She recognised them but couldn't bring their names to her mind. She began to struggle immediately as they approached, swinging out her leg to the back of the nearest marine's knee making him buckle. But with no hands or arms to steady herself, the marines quickly subdued her, hoisting her up to standing and pulling her out of the cell.

Zarek was now standing in the corridor with a roll of tape in his hand, tearing off a strip with a loud ripping sound. One of the marines grabbed her by the hair, tilting her head back slightly as Zarek walked over and placed the tape across her mouth.

"It's time to say hello to the boyfriend," he said.

Kara barely had the chance to frown before the hood went over her head, plunging her into darkness.

_oooo_

No matter how hard he tried, Lee hadn't slept at all that night. He had ended up sitting on the small sofa just watching Lena and Joseph as they slept in a cot together. He hadn't told them where their mother really was, not that they would have understood anyway.

All night he had pondered the words of his father over and over again. He was right, they had lost perspective. If they had been paying attention they may have noticed what was going on amongst their crew, discovered the feelings of mutiny that had spread like a plague.

He smiled warmly as he walked up to the cot and peered inside at their children. He couldn't have wished for more. He would never change anything that he had shared with Kara over the past few weeks, but he knew things had to change. They needed to learn some discretion. If their relationship was ever going to survive then they would need to keep completely professional whilst on duty.

It was looking at Lena and Joseph that stopped him from stealing the Blackbird and risking a suicide mission to the Astral Queen. He wouldn't risk leaving them without parents because he was too damn impulsive. Kara would probably kick his ass too if he tried, she was adept at looking after herself and would not impressed by any of his attempts at heroics.

A knock at the hatch door pulled him away from his reverie. Frowning he walked over and opened it up with a loud clunk, forgetting that the doors on the Galactica were heavy and definitely louder. He was shocked to see a very pregnant Cally on the other side with a grin on her face.

"Morning Sir."

She looked enormous, and with her small frame Lee was concerned she was about to topple forwards. He had heard she and the Chief had requested to leave for New Caprica, which had been denied. "Cally, morning, what can I do for you?"

"The Admiral sent me to babysit so you could go to the CIC stat."

"Right," said Lee. _Nice of him to call first._

"He said it was urgent."

Lee felt the slight panic radiating through his body. Urgent attendance in the CIC was rarely a good thing. Luckily he was already dressed. "Thanks Cally," he said grabbing his duty blues jacket and dashing out of the door. He ran down the corridor to the CIC seeing immediately that the room was a hive of activity. He peered through the crowds looking for his father, finally finding him in the small adjoining room. He was surprised to see Laura Roslin standing next to him.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Zarek just sent over a transmission," replied Adama, his forehead rumpled, which told Lee he was a mixture of concern and anger.

"What did he say?"

"Not much, just that he would be sending over a video transmission in 10 minutes. There's two minutes left."

Lee nodded, he turned to Laura wondering what she was doing here.

"The Quorum has turned to me," she said as if she was reading his mind. "They have no leader at the moment so they've come to me for advice on what to do."

"Well this wouldn't have happened at all if you were still President."

Laura smiled, "perhaps, but I believe Zarek was just waiting for an excuse to launch a coup. Baltar's ineffectiveness as President is just one of them, especially when he was pushed out from acting as the Vice President. He preys upon disquiet."

Laura had obviously been giving this some thought. "So what is the Quorum saying?"

"Many are wondering whether or not the fleet would be better off without Baltar."

Lee sighed, "surely they're aware that Zarek has two other hostages, one of them the Caprican representative?"

Adama interrupted, "I will not have a terrorist dictating the future of this fleet. We will get all three back alive. Do we have a plan ready yet?"

"Only one full of holes sir," admitted Lee. They had all been working on it until late into the night but they had failed to come up with something plausible. What they had really lacked was some of Starbuck's out of the box thinking.

Adama nodded, "keep on it."

The crackling sound of static broke through their chatter and echoed around the room. Everyone drew their attention towards the monitor at the side of the room. Since the end of the attacks it had been seldom used and before that it had only been used when receiving messages from Picon headquarters. Now all they could see was an open room which Lee recognised to be part of the Astral Queen, where, he didn't quite know. The silence was tense before they could hear quick shuffling footsteps coming closer.

They held their composure as a person dressed in a suit with a black hood over his head was dragged by the arms in front of the camera and forced down onto his knees. He wasn't alone for long and Lee felt his stomach drop as a female figure, unmistakably in a Colonial Fleet uniform with a hood over her head, was also dragged in front of the camera. Her hands were cuffed behind her back and she was thrown roughly to the floor, landing in a heap before being forced back up to a kneeling position.

"Zarek?" said Adama with a boom.

There was another crackle before the voice of the man himself came over the comm system. "Good morning Admiral."

"What are you doing Zarek?"

"I thought you would like to see two of my guests."

"I've told you before and I'll tell you again, I will not negotiate with a terrorist."

Zarek laughed slightly, "we'll see."

There was a pause and then the hoods were lifted from the "guests" heads. As they expected, it was Billy and Kara kneeling there, the latter looking as if she had been through a battle of her own. There was mottled blood under her nose and what appeared to be a bruise on her cheek. She was also the only one who had tape covering her mouth. Lee could guess what had happened, imagined that typically Kara had tried to escape but had been evidently unsuccessful.

Adama frowned, "I'm well aware of whom you have on your ship Zarek, but my position hasn't changed."

Lee couldn't hold back any longer, whispering into his father's ear, "he'll kill her dad, you need to do something." He got a pat on the arm as a response, which wasn't very comforting.

Zarek spoke again, "well I'll make it easy for you." A few moments later the guards stepped forward swiftly and grabbed Billy and Kara under the arms dragging them backwards through a hatch which was opening behind them. The struggled as they were dragged before being dumped unceremoniously to the deck. The guards then stepped back as the hatch doors shut tight and then a beeping noise sounded. "The airlock has been set for a slow vent. I reckon they have about thirty minutes of air left and forty minutes until the outer doors are fully opened."

Adama glanced at Lee briefly, saying in a low voice so only he could hear, "sometimes you have to roll a hard six." Lee frowned as his father turned back to the monitor, "then I give you thirty minutes to back down and release your hostages before the Galactica destroys your ship." He indicated to Gaeta who then cut the transmission. "Start making a slow course headed for the Astral Queen and set condition two around the ship."

"Dad, you can't..." began Lee. "You'd seriously consider killing Kara?"

"This isn't just about her son," said Adama looking pained. "Being in command sometimes means having to make the most difficult decisions and sacrifices."

"What did you mean...?"

"It means that in thirty minutes this situation will be resolved one way or the other."

Lee stared at the now blank monitor, hoping that his father was bluffing or that Kara could pull something out of the hat within the next thirty minutes.

_oooo_

She could already feel the cold seeping through her and she knew immediately that she was in an airlock. If she could imagine Zarek's plan correctly, then he was making her and Billy slowly suffocate to death. Admittedly, Kara had thought of better ways to go out.

She pushed herself up to a sitting position, seeing Billy next to her looking downtrodden. Frustrated she gave him a swift kick to wake him up, gesturing her head towards him. Thankfully he seemed to get the hint quickly and removed the tape from her mouth, which stung like hell.

"You okay?" she asked, even though she was the one who had obviously been beaten up.

"As well as I could be considering."

Kara looked around the airlock. The internal controls had probably been overridden so there was no chance of getting out. Except via the back exit and that wasn't really an option. She struggled with her cuffs, which had made her wrists sore and bruised. "Frak."

"What is it?"

"We don't have long," she replied, trying to formulate some kind of plan.

"Are they really going to kill us like this?" asked Billy, hugging himself to keep in the warmth.

"I wouldn't put it past Zarek, but then again it would've been easier to just put a bullet between our eyes."

"That's not very comforting."

"Hey, I'm not going to sugar coat it for you, we're pretty frakked right at this moment." The last thing she needed was a liability clinging to her for comfort. She sat trying to gauge Zarek's plan. It was weird, when he visited her in the cell he hadn't come across as wanting to kill them all, just use them as leverage. She glanced around, noticing that there were no cameras inside the airlock. "You're not squeamish are you?"

"Not really, why?" asked Billy, looking at her earnestly.

Kara shuffled where she sat and took some deep breaths. She had wanted to avoid this scenario, but her options were running out. Taking a few more deep breaths she grabbed her left thumb with her right hand.

*Snap*

The crippling pain resonated through her entire hand and up her arm making her feel nauseous and slightly faint.

"What was that?" asked Billy looking at her intently. "You've gone really pale."

"Shut up," gasped Kara as she fumbled with her cuffs, each even slight movement agonising. Finally she managed to free her left hand from the cuff. Rolling her shoulders she cradled her injured hand, the cuffs still hanging off her right wrist.

"How'd you manage that?" asked Billy.

"How'd you frakking think?" winced Kara. She hadn't done this since she was a teenager, a time she wished she could forget. Gripping her broken thumb with her right hand the pain gripped through her again as she snapped it back into place. Spots danced in front of her eyes and she found herself falling backwards before jolting back again, alert.

Billy's face seemed to have gone paler than hers and he was going slightly green. "I can't believe...Are you okay?"

"Frakking fantastic," she replied and pushed herself up to standing and walked over to the control panel. The room was now starting to get very cold and the air was feeling thinner. She remembered back to her training when her class had been required to perform simple tasks with minimal oxygen. She had played triad with Helo and couldn't stop guffawing throughout the entire exercise. Now was different and she had to concentrate fully as she looked at the panel. The last thing she wanted to do was accidently press the open airlock button when trying to turn off the override. Really she had no idea what she was doing, but it was worth a shot.

The sound of the inner hatch doors opening drew her attention quickly away from the panel as the fresh air whooshed in and she could breathe properly again. Stepping back from the hatch Kara drew her hands behind her back as she was still in the cuffs, clenching her right hand around the metal to form a makeshift knuckleduster. She didn't think she had managed to open the doors, so it must have come from the other side and that meant something had changed.

Sykes walked in flanked by other guards and was staring right at her. They were all armed, with their weapons aimed right at them.

"Decided not to suffocate us to death after all?" she said with a sneer.

"For some reason the boss has had a change of heart," replied Sykes getting closer. "Something to do with the old man threatening to blow up the ship."

"That's Admiral Adama to you Sykes."

"He wasn't half the person that Cain was, he doesn't deserve the title."

Kara clenched the handcuff tighter in her right hand and flexed the other to try and get the movement back. "As if anyone would really listen to a pilot who barely passed basic flight."

"You're the one who trained me Starbuck," he replied, emphasising the last word with a bite.

Kara twisted her head to the side and smiled, "hmmm and I wanted to fail you _before _the final test but I was overruled."

Sykes stepped up into her face, trying to stare her down. "Because Starbuck knows all of course," he said disingenuously. "What was it you made us call you...God?"

"There is one thing that I can't seem to work out," replied Kara unflinchingly, tightening the cuff around her hand even more and motioning with her other hand, telling Billy to stay down.

"Oh really, and what couldn't the great Starbuck work out?"

"Why you killed Ensign Pittman." She saw his face falter at hearing the woman's name. For the past few hours she had been piecing things together, joining the dots. Ensign Pittman and Sykes had been friends, spending a lot of their time together in the Mess. She and Lee weren't the only ones who had created rumours on the ship. Trying to push him further, she pressed on, "what happened, did she find out what you're planning or were you so frakking stupid that you thought she'd understand?"

His eyes faltered again, glancing away momentarily from her accusing gaze. The moment was enough, swinging her cuffed hand up, Kara connected sharply with Sykes' nose making him jerk backwards. Biting through the pain in her thumb she simultaneously grabbed his armed hand, twisting it violently and snapping the bone, making him scream out in agony. The other guards had no time to react as she raised his injured hand, crushing his finger onto the trigger and taking out the nearest guard. Pulling the squealing Sykes towards her with her free arm, she used him as a shield as she snapped his wrist around again, shooting the second guard down before twisting the gun fully out of his hand.

The last guard was already shouting for her to lower her gun, aiming his own weapon. Kara held Sykes firmly to her, ignoring his whimpers as she squared off with the scared looking guard.

"You broke my frakking arm," wailed Sykes, his voice high pitched.

Keeping her eyes firmly on the guard, she squeezed her arm tighter around Sykes' neck, telling him to shut up. She had the upper hand, a clear shot with another shielding her and she wasn't about to back down, her face daring the guard to try and make the first move.

"Drop it," said the guard, his voice wavering.

"He's all yours Billy," she replied.

The unfortunate guard barely had time to glance down before Kara planted a single round to his head, sending him sprawling dead to the floor.

"You bitch," squeaked Sykes.

"I'm going to make sure you pay for Pittman's death," she whispered into his ear before striking him hard to the side of the head with the gun. Her assault had lasted less than a minute, but the silence filled the airlock as if it had been silent for hours. Turning around, Kara looked down at Billy who was frozen to the spot, looking at the scene of destruction. "Next time actually go for the gun."

"I...I..."

"On second thought maybe not." She held up her gun, aiming it towards the open hatch as she crouched down by each of the guards, taking their weapons in turn. "Think you can use one of these?" she asked turning back to Billy again and holding out one of the guns to him.

The former President's aide looked up at her before standing to his feet and taking it from her. "Do you have a plan?"

"It's pretty simple, get off the ship and shoot anyone who gets in the way." She paced carefully to the edge of the hatch door, the gun held down as she peered round into the room. It was empty, the former occupants now lying either dead or unconscious in the airlock. She edged around the door with the gun raised, scoping the dynamics of the room.

"What if the Admiral decides to blow up the ship?" asked Billy as he followed her.

The former President's aide was sweet, but he sure was irritating. Kara needed to concentrate on getting out of this tin can and didn't need some kid holding her back. "He won't. Keep a look out," she ordered and walked up to the nearest consol. Billy seemed slow to respond until she turned and nodded him over to the exit door, rolling her eyes as she went back to the consol. She cursed as she began flipping a few buttons on what she hoped was the communication controls, but the systems on this ship were very different from a Battlestar. She knew the comm had to work though because Zarek has transmitted a message to the Galactica only about fifteen minutes before.

"I think I hear someone coming," whispered Billy, his gun aimed out of the door.

_oooo_

Lee couldn't stop looking at his watch as the seconds ticked by agonisingly slowly. He wasn't sure if his father was bluffing or not, but he did know that the Galactica was getting closer and closer to the Astral Queen by the minute. It was killing him to think of Kara slowly suffocating in that airlock, gasping for breath in the cold.

If he ever saw Zarek again he would squeeze the life out of him.

The crackle of the comm system echoed through the CIC making Lee glance up quickly towards his father whose brow was wrinkled in concern. Perhaps Zarek was calling to say he had given up. The crackle then went dead to everyone's disappointment, followed shortly by the crackling sound again.

Lee's heart raced as suddenly through the static he heard Kara's blunt voice powering through. "Well if you see someone, frakking shoot them." There was a knocking sound which he imagined was Kara hitting the comm system, not realising that she had already made it work.

Adama picked up his communicator phone, speaking strongly, "Starbuck, this is Galactica do you copy?"

The sudden sound of gunfire echoed throughout the room before the line went dead again.

"Starbuck?" yelled Adama.

Lee didn't wait for the order that Adama shouted at his fleeing back as he ran out of the CIC, sprinting down to the hangar deck. He stopped marines in his wake, ordering them to follow until at last he found Chief Tyrol.

"Tyrol, I need a raptor ready stat," he shouted.

"The old man beat you to it. I have two being prepped now."

As the raptors were being dragged out Lee ran to the arms locker, donning body armour, helmet and grabbing a gun before running straight onto the raptor. He took a seat at the front next to Racetrack who was piloting. The launch was swift, bypassing the usual protocol and they were out into the vacuum of space within minutes. Fortunately the Galactica had neared the gap so the Astral Queen was straight ahead.

"Punch it in hard," said Lee to Racetrack.

"I'm going as fast as we can sir," she replied.

"Bullshit, I could get out and push us faster."

"Do you want us crash and burn in the hangar sir?" she replied more irate this time.

"I don't give a frak, just get us there."

He ignored whatever she muttered under her breath, keeping his eyes peeled on his target, willing the raptor to go faster.

It was the hardest landing he had ever experienced, the raptor jarring on impact. Immediately Lee jumped up from his chair, following the other marines as they exited with guns raised. The other raptor landed soon after them just as hard and more marines disembarked followed by Kat and Hotdog. Lee signalled to them, directing them over to the other side of the hangar.

They were swift and precise as they moved through the ship, meeting little resistance that they couldn't dispel of quickly. A few had made them dive for cover before they were taken out. Lee found himself entering the main hall where the majority of cells were held. He signalled to two marines to cover them from the upper level and carried on along the middle row of cells, his gun raised. The sound of gunfire echoed through the room as his team took out any resistance.

He could hear the sound of Baltar's voice before he reached his cell. He was shouting out asking what the frak was going on. As Lee neared he signalled to the marine behind him for some bolt cutters.

"Major Adama, thank the Gods it's you," whined Baltar as Lee stood in front of the cell door, cutters in hand.

Lee looked at lock. There was no way to cut through it and it would take ages to cut through the metal mesh that made up the cell walls. "Please tell me we shot someone who has the keys," he said to the marine next to him.

"I'll ask sir," replied the marine and ran off down the corridor.

"Why has it taken you so long to get here?" asked Baltar as Lee started to try and cut at the wires anyway. He gave the President a long stare to shut him up.

He heard the marine returning a few minutes later at a jogging pace. "I've got a key sir," he said and opened the door.

As much as Lee wanted to help in the search for Kara, he had to get the President out of there and fast. Grabbing him by the arm he frogmarched him out of the cell, ignoring his protests, and guided him down the row of cells quickly with his gun raised until they reached the hangar deck. He shoved him on board the raptor quickly, pushing him to the back.

Lee made to exit the raptor again but Racetrack's raised voice stopped him, "where are you going sir?"

"To search for the others," he replied as if it was obvious.

"You can't leave me," added Baltar as he sat himself in the corner of the raptor.

"Sir, we have to get him out of here stat," said Racetrack. "I shouldn't take him by myself in case there's resistance." Lee was torn, he wanted to find Kara and make sure she was alright, but the sound of gunfire echoing around the ship told him he needed to get Baltar out of there. "Sir, we have to go. Now!"

Lee nodded and pressed the button to close the hatch, "take us out Racetrack."

_oooo_

Kara had to give Billy some credit. He had taken out two guards that had come running to the airlock. It was a pity that his gun had then jammed, so she had taken out the other three who had followed.

She had no idea where they were going exactly as they travelled down the maze of corridors for what seemed like hours. Being hit on the head and blindfolded had turned her sense of direction around and she no idea where Baltar was being held or where the main hangar deck was. They were also vastly outnumbered and she had needed to duck back on numerous occasions to avoid getting shot.

As they entered another room she could suddenly hear the sound of distant gunfire resounding through the ship. They weren't alone anymore.

"You still with me Billy?" asked Kara before they rounded another corner.

"Is that gunfire I can hear?"

"Yep, the Galactica might have gotten my message after all. Come on."

The sound of gunfire acted as a guide, letting them know in which direction they needed to go. Using caution she paused at one corner, signalling to Billy to get down. There was a voice and it was getting closer and closer. Kara stood flush to the wall, the gun held up against the approaching intruders, her body on edge. Her reactions were quick; shooting up at the ceiling when she released it was Kat rounding the corner just as she pulled the trigger. The woman's reflexes kicked in and she spun round immediately aiming her gun at Kara, but Hotdog knocked her arm away just in time as she pulled the trigger.

"Frak Kat it's me," said Kara, her gun still held up to the ceiling.

"Sorry sir," replied Kat.

"Have you found Baltar?"

"Apollo's team is heading that way."

"Lee here?" asked Kara, wanting nothing more than to see him. "Get Billy out of here to the raptor and I'll head towards Baltar."

Kat shook her head, "I'm under orders from the Admiral to get you out of here straight away."

Kara wanted to protest but she knew she had to keep her head. Nodding she followed Kat down the corridors, recognising some of the areas from her previous visit. They ran through the cargo area where she had fled before and the main hangar deck was indeed at the end through a large set of doors. They arrived just in time to see one of the raptors starting its engines to leave.

Kara and Billy were hauled onto the raptor, the hatch door shutting straight after. There was a pause as the other raptor took off first.

"Who's on that raptor?" asked Kara, hoping that it was Lee and she wasn't leaving him behind.

"Baltar and Apollo with Racetrack piloting," replied Kat from up at the front.

Kara had sat herself down in one of the passenger seats, her head leant back in relief. It had been a very long twenty four hours, which were all starting to catch up with her at once. The exhaustion was hitting in as the adrenalin wore off and her body ached, most of all her left hand which had swollen painfully. She longed to see Lee, to have him hold her in his arms. Closing her eyes she willed the raptor to go faster, smiling when finally they hit the deck.

She was the first to step out of the raptor when it landed and walked down the wing. She ignored the medics who came to offer her aid and walked across the deck in search of Lee's raptor. Finally she clocked him and not caring who was watching she smiled as she walked right into his arms. Their embrace was warm and deep, leaving no-one who was watching in any doubt that they were together.

Leaning into her neck Lee whispered, "I missed you."

The tears pooled slightly in Kara's eyes and she smiled into his shoulder, "I love you."

Lee moved back slightly so they could see each other, stroking her hair back softly before placing a kiss to her brow. "I love you too."

From up above Adama looked down at his son and Kara with Laura at his side, a smile forming on his face.

**AN: I would like to thank everyone for all the support throughout this story. As you could probably tell, I've been finding it more difficult recently to post regularly and I apologise for that. Work has been crazy the past few months and I barely have time to eat let alone write. Even though I still have many ideas I'm not sure how much longer I can keep going with it, but I am determined to finish. Thanks again **


	45. A Glimpse of the Future Part Seven

Chapter 44

The observation room seemed so empty without Caroline sitting and watching their guests like she normally did. Tonight it was Ford who sat just watching them from the gloom of the dark room, just sitting there and looking in through the windows.

The reason he was up here at this time of the night was that he couldn't sleep. For hours he had tossed and turned with various thoughts rushing through his mind until finally he gave up and walked down to the observation room. It had been ages since he had been here. He wished he could blame the absence on being too busy to visit, but in all honesty he had been avoiding Caroline. It wasn't that he didn't like seeing her but he was feeling guilty.

The team going up in that ship had been chosen. Everyone on the base had volunteered for the honour and Ford had known for a while that he was going to be one of them. But about a week ago he had found out that Caroline was not going with them and knew she was going to be devastated. The powers that be seemed to think only one scientist was needed on the mission and they had gone with Swanson.

Personally Ford was also apprehensive about the mission, despite his excitement. It would be risky and they were putting a hell of a lot of faith in people they knew next to nothing about, except they had been wiped out by an enemy that was still hunting them down.

He sipped at his mug of coffee savouring the warm bitter taste, holding the liquid in his mouth for as long as possible. And then he heard the noise that seemed to be coming from one of the rooms. It was a low murmuring sound that told him someone wasn't having a good time, more like a bad dream. He neared the glass and peered through into the rooms individually until he found the source. It was coming from Blondie, who turned over violently in her sleep. This can't have been her first nightmare because Blue Eyes didn't stir, even when she jerked up awake holding a hand at her chest.

"What's wrong with her?" asked a voice from behind him, which made Ford nearly jump a mile.

"Fuck, Swanson? What the hell are you doing up here?"

"Same as you I'd imagine," replied Swanson as her peered into Blondie's room. He turned back and obviously saw the puzzlement on Ford's face. "I couldn't sleep. The, ah, powers upstairs told me yesterday that I'm going to be on the mission."

"Scared?"

"On the contrary, I'm so excited I can't get my brain to shut off."

They both watched as Blondie carefully slipped out of the bed, placing the duvet back over Blue Eyes before walking to the table and taking a seat. In the dark they could clearly see that her back was covered in sweat and she was visibly shaken. Ford knew she was a very strong person and therefore it must have been a terrifying dream to affect her so much.

Perhaps Caroline's influence was rubbing off on him, but he couldn't help walking out of the observation room and into the corridor. There were armed guards on duty so he knew he was safe, despite how unwise what he was doing was. The lights in the corridor were already dimmed. He walked up to Blondie's door and typed in the security code making the door open up. Her head rose towards him straight away and she scrunched up slightly in the chair. Ford motioned for her to exit, pointing to his mug of coffee as a temptation. She hesitated understandably, glancing quickly over at Blue Eyes before leaving the room. Ford guided her into the observation room, turning on a few of the lights as he went.

"Are you crazy?" asked Swanson, as Ford grabbed a blanket and passed it over to the woman. "We're just going to let her wander around in here?"

Ford shrugged as he set about making three cups of coffee. "It would help if you set the translator machines up."

Swanson stared at him incredulously for a moment and then set about turning the equipment on as Ford carried on making the coffee. Blondie just watched them uncertainly, her face wan and she was still shaking. She seemed unsure of what was going on, her body on alert to defend herself. Ford turned to her and smiled warmly, handing her a mug. He was fully aware that giving such a volatile woman a mug of boiling fluid was potentially dangerous, but for some reason he trusted her.

"Thanks," she said making Ford do a double-take. He had been learning as much of their guest's language as he possibly could to be ready for the mission, he hadn't figured they would start learning English themselves.

Blondie stepped away slightly and sat quietly in Caroline's comfy chair, curling herself into the blanket. She took a sip of coffee from the mug and then looked up at the two men who were staring at her. Ford had already learnt the word "what?" that escaped her lips.

Swanson pulled out of his trance and continued to hook up the machine, finally pressing a switch. "You're all set," he said and then picked up his mug, taking a seat on the edge of one of the tables.

Ford nodded and dragged a chair so he was sitting just in front Blondie. For a few minutes they all seemed to sit silently, just staring at each other in the dimly lit room, until Ford finally spoke. "Are you feeling better?" he asked.

After the translation had finished Blondie took a sip from the mug, "than what?"

"That was a pretty intense nightmare you were having."

"So you decided to bring me out here for more questioning?" Her brashness made Ford want to react but he stayed calm. "What do you want to know? How frakked up we all are to suffer from nightmares?"

"No," replied Ford amiably. "I just thought you might need a cup of coffee, but if you would prefer it back in your room..."

Blondie glanced down for a moment, blowing into her coffee before responding in a quieter voice, "I'm fine."

"It really didn't look that way to me. Look, I've fought as a soldier in two wars. I know the horrors that can affect people in such a way." Blondie didn't respond. "Does it have something to do with the scars on your back?"

Silence.

Ford leant back for a moment. "When I was twenty-one I was out on my first tour when my patrol was ambushed. They killed over four of my comrades straight away and then took the rest of us as captives. I was only one of three people to be rescued alive. The nightmares still haunt me."

Blondie seemed to study him for a moment, as if she was deciding if he was lying or not. Ford had never retold that story to anyone, had never brought it up, but somehow he found it easy to speak to this woman. He reckoned that they probably had a lot in common.

"Lee and I were captured," she said at last.

"By those cylon things?"

"Yeah," she sipped her coffee. "They took us on board their ship, making everyone believe we were dead, they even had a frakking funeral."

"They tortured you?" asked Swanson from his perch.

Blondie turned to the man and nodded making him bow his head slightly.

"How'd you escape?" asked Ford.

"No-one's been able to work that out," replied Blondie and then took a larger gulp of the coffee.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, the Galactica found the Baseship we were being held on and it was dying. They found me hooked up to one of them, probably the pilot."

"They can do that?" asked Swanson.

"Apparently, I don't really know. All I remember is a lot of chaos then nothing," she said with a shrug. "I woke up from my coma ten weeks later."

"And they have no idea what happened to you?"

"Nope."

Ford sensed that she was holding something back, her demeanour guarded. The notion that a human could be hooked up to a computer was incredible and he wondered what else had transpired to bring them here.

Blondie stood up quickly, her body no longer sweating and walked to the glass panels, peering in at her room. Her husband was sitting up on the bed looking evidently worried about the location of his wife. He knocked on the window hard with his hand shouting out "hey."

"So this is what you lot do all day, just watch us," said Blondie placing her hand against the glass. "Do you get a kick out of it?"

"It's not like that," replied Ford walking up so that he was next to her. "We've told you before..."

"Yeah, yeah, you've never met a person born on another planet before, I get it."

Swanson had also walked up to them, standing about a metre behind. "Have you found life on any other planets?"

Blondie turned towards the scientist making him step back slightly. "Nope, it's dead out there."

The lights in the room brightened making all three of them look over towards the entrance. Standing in the doorway was Caroline looking completely taken aback. She stared for what seemed like ages at Blondie before finally speaking. "What's going on?"

"I could ask you the same thing," replied Ford. "Its 4am why are you up?"

"You're asking _me_ that? Why the frak are you up?"

Ford was incensed he stormed across the room forcefully pointing for her to follow, which she initially ignored. He turned to her, his voice angry, "don't make me have to give you an order Carry, this is a military establishment and believe me I can." He didn't know why he was so angry, his reaction involuntary.

Caroline flushed and stormed out of the room, brushing past him as she went. Ford glanced over at Swanson and Blondie briefly before following in her wake.

_oooo_

The shock of seeing Ford, Swanson and Blondie standing together in the observation room had overwhelmed Caroline, followed by her intense anger at being shouted at by Ford. He was now dogging her footsteps as she stormed away. All she had wanted to do was wake up and be there when their guests awoke, but they had beaten her to it.

"Will you stop?" shouted out Ford from behind, but Caroline kept moving through the corridors. "Hey."

"Fuck off, Ford. How could you do that to me?" She was biting back the tears that were starting to pool in her eyes.

"Do what?"

She could sense he was catching up as she stopped at a security door to swipe her access card across the readout. She didn't have time to walk through the opening door before Ford grabbed her arm and spun her round, their eyes meeting with deep intensity.

"Do what Carry?" repeated Ford.

Caroline forced her arm away, but her eyes still focused upon him. "How could you talk to me like that in front of them?"

"What? Do you really think that woman cares?"

"Yes I do!"

"Why? Explain it to me Carry."

This time she tore her eyes away and tried to twist away. "You wouldn't understand."

She only made it a few steps before her dreams were cruelly torn away.

"You're not going Carry."

She understood his meaning instantly and this time she couldn't stop the tears from flowing down her cheeks. For the past three months she had wanted nothing else but to head for the stars and now that dream had been torn away in four harsh words.

Ford's voice was softer when he finally spoke again. "I'm sorry Carry. Look, I..."

Caroline wiped away the tears that had streaked down her face, with her sleeve. Ford had gone quiet but she was still very aware of his presence behind her. "Swanson?" she asked, but part of her didn't want to know how close she had been to her dream.

"The powers that be feel he's more suitable for this mission."

"Of course he is. I mean, I've only been a part of this since that ship crash landed in our back yard, but apparently that means nothing."

"Of course it doesn't, it's just..."

"That I have tits?"

"What? Are you kidding me, it has nothing to do with you being a woman."

This time Caroline turned to face Ford. She could feel the heat in her cheeks burning through her. In her mind she was convinced that was the reason why. She was too weak to go on the mission. "Just stay away from me John."

And with that she turned and walked swiftly away, her heart throbbing in her chest.

_oooo_

Ford's emotions kept fluctuating between anger and guilt. He was still reeling from Caroline's accusations and then the disappointment written across her face wouldn't leave his mind. It was now early afternoon and she had not appeared in the observation room again and no-one knew where she had gone. As much as he tried he couldn't push her away from the forefront of his mind.

When he had returned to the observation room, Blondie had been returned to her room with another cup of coffee. Swanson had berated him for leaving him alone with the woman, reminding him of her penchant for slamming people's heads into tables. He had been terrified of her as she started laughing upon Ford and Caroline's hasty exit, up until she apparently said to him, "and everyone always said Lee and I should just stop kidding ourselves and frak."

Swanson explained that she had then requested to be taken back to her room and spent the rest of the morning sitting with Blue Eyes, snuggled up against him on the bed.

Now they were being led into Howell's office. This time they didn't use any restraints to transfer them, trusting that they would behave, which they did. Ford had seen Blondie glance over at him briefly as they entered the office. It was if she was ashamed of something. Perhaps she hadn't meant to tell them so much that morning.

Howell sat behind his desk as he addressed them. "We've agreed to attempt a mission to your ship."

After the translation, Blue Eyes responded, "I guessed as much from the work we've been doing to fix up the raptor."

"We've also agreed that one of you will pilot the mission along with four people from here as an escort."

Blue Eyes nodded, "I understand, but for this type of mission we require a minimum of two pilots." Howell leant back in his chair and sighed. "I'm sure you wouldn't want your people to be left to fend for themselves if something happens to the only pilot."

"Okay I concede to your point. We have in mind..."

"Before you say anything, I'll tell you now that the two pilots will be my wife and Karl Agathon." Ford saw Blondie turn towards her husband swiftly, clearly shocked.

"You're not really in a position to be making any demands."

"We want to go home just as much as _you_ want to get in contact with our people."

"Lee..." whispered Blondie, but he squeezed her hand softly in response before addressing Howell again.

"There are three children up on our ship who've been deprived of both parents for too long."

Ford watched as Blondie squeezed her husband's hand tightly. He looked over at Howell and nodded his head to show him he agreed with their guests. They both knew for the sake of establishing a relationship with these people there had to be some compromise.

"So be it," said Howell. "What will you need?" he added addressing Blondie.

Blondie drew her attention away from her husband and back at Howell. "Nothing, you'll leave the piloting to us."

"Then you'll need to see your team. Ford behind you will be one of them."

Blondie didn't turn around like Ford expected so he stepped forward. "I'll take you down to the ship to meet your team."

He guided her down to the cargo area of the ship where the mission team was waiting. He also asked for Rugby to be brought up, who arrived shortly afterwards looking a little confused.

"This is your team," he said indicating the three people who were standing in front of the ship in what could only be described as mechanic's overalls. "You've met Swanson before, he'll be the scientist for the mission. The Foreign Minister you met before doesn't consider himself fit for the mission so he's sent his aide, Greg Langley. And finally we have Squadron Leader Colin Bigsby, also known as "Biggy." I think you two will get along well, he's one of our best RAF pilots."

"Hi," said Biggy confidently and held out his hand which Blondie took. He shook it firmly which seemed to surprise her. Even though both were military they didn't greet each other as such.

"What do you fly?" asked Blondie, seemingly interested in finding someone similar.

Biggy seemed a bit confused by the translation computer and took a moment to get his bearings, "Typhoons mainly, but you probably have no idea what that is. It's a fighter attack jet. I'm looking forward to seeing these vipers you fly."

"Perhaps my Commander will even let you fly one."

Biggy's face lit up at that prospect. "That would be an honour."

"I guess your birds can't fly beyond your atmosphere."

Biggy laughed, "unfortunately not."

Ford interrupted the pilots as they had to get a lot done in a short space of time. They were running against a clock, knowing that their guest's ship would only stay in the area for a limited time, if it was still out there.

"Right listen up and listen carefully," he said. "We've agreed to this mission in an attempt to establish relations between our two people. The plan is to leave the Earth's atmosphere and attempt to establish communications with your ship."

"What if the Pegasus is not within communication distance?" asked Blondie.

"We understand that your ship has the capability of making a faster than light jump."

Blondie nodded, "how long can we stay out there before we're expected back?"

"If we find your ship and communicate back to Earth successfully then 28 days, but we only have six hours before we're expected to establish that communication. Is the faster than light systems working?"

"Should be, but we'll soon find out if it's not."

Her words weren't very comforting. "Right, over to you then."

"To what?" asked Blondie looking confused.

"To tell us what you need us to do on this mission."

"Frak all, and that goes for all of you. No-one is to touch or do anything without permission is that clear?" The four of them murmured in response. "Is that frakking clear!" she shouted commanding their full attention. This time they replied "yes" with conviction. "Good, because this ship is like nothing you've ever flown in before. You don't know its workings and you don't know how any of the controls work. One wrong move and you could emergency jettison the hatch and that would really frak us up good."

"Trust me when I say none of us will touch anything."

"We're far from trusting each other don't you think?"

Ford smiled briefly, "perhaps, but then you can understand the big leap of faith we're taking here too."

Blondie shrugged and continued shouting out orders at them as if she was instructing a bunch of cadets. Rugby just stood by with arms crossed, quietly laughing to himself. He evidently had seen Blondie perform this kind of spiel before and Ford wondered if she had indeed drilled cadets before.

He looked up briefly to see if Caroline was watching from above like she usually did, hoping to see her standing there angelically like normal, but today the gangway was empty. His stomach dropped again from the guilt, remembering the crushed look that had shown across her face. Looking at the people who were going on this mission, Ford could concede to her point. They were all men between the ages of 25-35, two of whom were military trained.

Ford sighed and whispered under his breath, "It should have been you Carry."

_oooo_

The following day was spent conducting tests and drills and the excitement in the base was growing by the minute. It was now early in the morning with only six hours left before "blast off" as Ford liked to call it. He hadn't even attempted to try and sleep, the butterflies turning somersaults in his stomach. He had never been as nervous as this before in his life, despite everything he had experienced. This feeling was more of a nervous excitement, an itching to get on that ship and out to the stars.

The training and drills had gone well. Blondie had taken the lead with everything, talking them through emergency procedures and the basics of space flight. It seemed pretty simple and had evidently been a common mode of transport in their Colonies. What she did spend a long time explaining was what she called their FTL drive. Apparently the effects could make your body feel as if it was being compressed inwards and could cause disorientation, but she did assure them that she was used to the effects.

Through his inability to sleep, Ford had wandered to the observation room. The doors were shut, but from tonight they were no longer locked. He sat alone watching through the glass for the last time. As of tomorrow he would be amongst their people, no longer just the observer, but a stranger in another world. He wondered what they were like, if he would be locked up and studied or merely accepted. The possibilities were endless.

He looked on through the glass with longing, the look on Caroline's face still playing over and over in his mind as he watched. No-one seemed to be able to sleep tonight. Brunette and Legs had been laughing and joking about flights they had taken together. Rugby and the robot had been quiet, just curled up together on the bed. Blondie and Blue Eyes were also curled up together on the bed, just holding each other and talking quietly.

"You be careful out there," said Blue Eyes gently stroking back the hair from his wife's cheek.

Blondie smiled, "my taste for heroics wore off a long time ago Lee."

"Promise me Kara."

She sat up and placed a kiss to his lips, "I love you Lee and I promise I won't do anything crazy."

"And no retina detaching moves either," replied Blue Eyes with a smile.

"Aw, and I was planning to barrel roll my way out of the atmos."

"Kara," stated Blue Eyes only half seriously. "I expect a text book perfect take off and flight."

Blondie knelt in front of him and saluted, pulling a silly grin, "yes sir."

Blue Eyes laughed and sprung forwards, grabbing and pulling his wife's legs so that she fell back onto the bed with a loud guffaw. He then lowered himself between her legs, placing a kiss to her forehead. "Hug them for me."

Blondie's face turned serious, "of course."

Their kisses then deepened, making Ford feel as if he was intruding. He stood up from his chair and turned to leave. Standing in the doorway was Caroline, stopping him dead in his tracks and making the breath catch in his throat.

"Can't sleep?" she asked softly.

"Can't get my mind to switch off so I came here."

"Did it help?"

In the glow of the dimmed light, Ford thought he had never seen Caroline looking so serene. Her hair was down around her shoulders and she had removed her usual doctor's jacket. The most beautiful he had seen her was out in the snow as their guests played, her cheeks glowing from the cold.

"A bit," he said at last. "But they make me realise I'm missing something in my life."

"And what's that?"

"Look at them, through all they've been through they're still united, still in love with each other."

"Now you know why I spend so much time here."

She was looking at him intently, her eyes boring through to his soul. Ford felt his heart clench in his chest when he realised he wouldn't see Caroline's face or see her smile for four weeks, or worse, never again. He found himself stepping nearer and nearer until he could reach out and stroke her cheek with his hand. She didn't move away, her eyes staring into his as he leant in and placed a soft kiss to her lips.

She deepened the kiss, their tongues entwining and Ford wished this moment would never end. Gently she pushed him back into the room, kissing their way until they were laid out on the floor.

"Am I what you really want?" asked Caroline softly as she lay above him.

Ford placed a kiss to the tip of her nose and then rolled them so her back was on the floor. Kneeling above her he slowly unbuttoned her blouse as Caroline looked up at him with a smile. Folding aside the cloth he stroked a hand down her chest and to her stomach before she rose up to meet his lips, undoing the buttons on his shirt. They slowly kissed as they pushed their clothing away from their shoulders.

The moan escaped from Caroline's lips as Ford placed a soft kiss to her collarbone, pushing aside her bra strap. Quickly he reached a hand up to the table and pressed the remote that shut the doors to give them some privacy before caressing his tongue down her chest.

"I'm going to miss you so much," he said in between kisses.

Caroline focused her eyes upon him as she reached behind her, undoing the clasp on her bra and dropping it to the floor. Ford stroked his hands up the curve in her hips and the side of her breasts, flicking a thumb across her nipples. He had never been more nervous with a woman, had never cared enough about anyone to want to make it special. He laid her down on top of the discarded clothing and stroked a hand down her stomach and unbuttoned her trousers, pulling them down. "You're so beautiful," he smiled and placed a kiss to her stomach.

"It's about time you noticed," she replied with a smile.

"I've always noticed, believe me Carry."

She curled a leg around him, pulling him in closer and unzipped his fly. They kissed and caressed, taking in as much of each as possible and fixing it in their minds, memorising every curve, every moan until finally Ford lay above her between her legs, their naked bodies flush together. Caroline raised her knee, stroking a foot lovingly up his thigh as he stroked back her hair before placing another kiss to her lips and entering her slowly.

Their pace was gentle, savouring each moment as he moved inside of her, kissing his way along her jaw line. Each movement was ecstasy. Gradually his pace quickened and the heat bubbled inside until he heard her soft moan, followed by a gentle convulse which pushed him over the edge. He held himself within her, their foreheads touching as they waited to catch their breath, their flesh clammy from the heat of their bodies.

As much as he wanted to stay in this position forever, Ford eventually rolled to the side. They laid together, their bodies entwined upon the discarded clothing and awaited the morning that would split them apart.

_oooo_

The morning air was crisp from the cold as the ship was towed outside into the outer enclosure of the base. No-one had slept that night, all in quiet contemplation of this moment.

Caroline had wrapped herself up in a thick coat, her arms wrapped around her to keep in the warmth. She couldn't stop smiling inside as she remembered the feel of Ford's body against hers, but now she was losing him and a dark shadow lingered in the back of her mind, telling her she might never get to see him again. It was that thought which made the tears want to trickle down her cheeks.

She felt a presence beside her, but it wasn't her Ford. Turning her head to the side she saw Blue Eyes standing there, also wrapped in a thick coat and staring on at the ship. He turned to her and nodded his head. Words didn't need to be exchanged between them, they understood each other completely.

They were the ones being left behind.

Various scientists and members of staff walked back and forth with boxes of equipment and translator machines, loading up the ship in readiness for the journey. They all then stood to the side along with everyone else from the base to watch history unfold.

From inside the base, Blondie suddenly exited closely followed by Rugby and a guard. He was wearing Leg's suit and looked to be uncomfortable with the helmet under his arm. Blondie was dressed in overalls which were bright blue. They were closely followed by the rest of their crew. Ford and Biggy looked quietly confident, but Swanson looked nervous and Greg Langley looked ready to throw up.

They didn't have the capacity or the space to equip each person with a full spacesuit, but their guests had assured them it would not be necessary. Test after test had been performed on the ship and it was ready.

Blondie walked up to Blue Eyes as they approached the ship. Caroline could see the anguish in her face as her husband stroked back her hair and placed a kiss to her forehead. Her heart lurched when Ford walked past, their eyes meeting in a long gaze. Her head felt suddenly heavy and her body numbed as he had to turn away and walked onto the ship, the hatch door closing slowly afterwards.

There was a pause that seemed endless and then the ship came to life, slowly lifting off the ground making Caroline shield her face from the dust that blew up into the air, the sound deafening. And then it turned above them, the boom of the thrusters resounding through the base as quickly it flew away, up and into the clouds.

For ages she just stood there, watching the skies with Blue Eyes next to her, knowing that all she could do now was sit and wait.


	46. Birthday

**Present from Santa Claus **

Chapter 45

Their clammy flesh slid together in a perfect motion, their lips meeting in a slow caress. Their bodies flush together as they moved within each other in a steady rhythm. The soft moan escaped from Kara's lips as Lee stroked a hand down her arm making her nerve endings tingle.

"I missed..." he said, placing kissed to her jaw. "...you...so much."

He sat on the edge of the bed with Kara in his lap, her legs entwined around his back. Her eyes closed, she tilted her head back as he continued to kiss his way up her jaw then nipped the bottom of her earlobe making her gasp. Quickly she twisted her head back to his, sucking in his bottom lip between her teeth. Their pace quickened slightly as the low buzz of pleasure echoed through their bodies, but still they took their time, devouring each other slowly.

"Lee," she moaned, his name rolling so easily off her tongue. He was kissing her neck now as they began to tremble, the release sparking through them. "Oh Gods, Lee."

Their breathing came in short pants, their foreheads together as they came down from their high. For ages they just sat there, still entwined in each other's arms, held together by their warmth.

"My gods Lee..." said Kara at last, drawing back so she could look him in the eyes. "That was...I need to get myself nearly killed more often."

Lee placed a soft kiss to her nose and then traced a hand down her cheek. It had been two days since Zarek had held her hostage and a dark purple bruise still marred her cheek. Doc Phillips had also placed her thumb into a temporary splint after painfully ensuring it had popped back into the socket correctly.

"Never again Kara, please."

She placed another kiss to his lips and stroked her fingers through his short hair. "I'm fine Lee."

"You had to dislocate your own thumb to escape from a venting airlock, it was too frakking close," He replied, shifting slightly within her making the shockwaves burst through her stomach again.

Kara moaned slightly and then brought her lips to his again. "Mmm, I love it when you talk about medical stuff when I'm sitting on top of you."

Lee chuckled slightly and stroked back her hair, cupping her face. "I love you Kara Thrace," he said and placed another kiss to her lips. He could feel himself hardening within her again and slowly she moved her hips against his. The pressure built within him immediately. Still coming down from the time before they reached their peak again, hugging each other close as they gradually tipped back over the edge.

Their breathing was ragged as they came down again, with only the sudden motion as Kara caressed her leg up his waist, bringing Lee back from the skies. The grin upon her face was devilish, "mmm, still love me?"

"Nah, I've had my fill now," replied Lee teasingly, making her playfully slap him on the arm in response. Their giggling noises echoed through the room as Lee sat up from the bed with Kara still in his arms and then turned them so her back flumped down on the bed. He was already nearly ready for another round.

The sound of a soft gurgle coming through over the radio was enough to make them pull reluctantly away from each other.

Kara pouted, "Frak, they never wake up during the night."

Lee stood up and she rolled off the bed, quickly throwing a towel around her and going into the adjoining room. Joseph was standing up in his crib, gripping onto the side and looking irritable. He reached out for Kara as she leant over and took him into her arms. He calmed as soon as he was out of his crib and nestled his head into her shoulder.

"Hey, what was up?" she cooed as she carried him into the other room.

"Someone's probably overexcited about turning one tomorrow," said Lee throwing on his slacks. "And wanted to make sure we didn't forget."

"As if I could," she replied, stroking the head of her son who had already fallen back asleep with his thumb in his mouth. There was only one word that could accurately describe how Kara was feeling about her children's impending first birthday and that was "denial." She couldn't believe how fast they were already growing up. "Is it that time already?" she asked Lee who was carrying on getting dressed.

He looked at his watch, "it's 2200 hours, Fisk will have my ass if he catches me here."

Kara merely nodded, the disappointment evident on her face. Theirs was the worst kept secret relationship in the fleet, but still they had to sneak around. "Frakking Fisk, can't your old man do anything?"

"It's Fisk's ship Kara."

"Yeah, and your father just happens to be the Admiral of the entire fleet."

"He can't make one rule for us and another rule for everyone else," he turned to her and walked over, placing a firm kiss to her lips. "Believe me, I wish he could change the rules for everybody."

Kara turned away and walked back into the adjoining room with Joseph. By the time Lee had pulled his tanks over his head and pulled his boots on, she had returned empty handed. He too hated what they had to keep doing. If it were up to him, he would have moved into the quarters months ago.

"I think they're going to keep waking me up all night," said Kara glumly.

"Look, there might be a way we could share quarters," he replied, pulling on his off-duty shirt.

"Really, and what's that?"

Lee shrugged, "married officers are entitled to a billet." The silence in the room was deafening as his words sunk in. "Speak to me Kara," he added at last.

"About what? I don't know what to say to that Lee."

This wasn't quite how he had planned to broach this subject and it was literally blowing up in his face in the form of a pissed off looking blonde. He shrugged again in attempt to make it sound as if it had just been a passing comment. "It was just an option."

"A frakking option?" her words were sounding more and more angry and Lee knew he had just made matters worse. "You make a lame ass proposal and now you're saying it's just an option?"

"Kara...I..." he stuttered. In the past few months he had seen a completely different Kara, but now as she stood before him, he saw a glimpse of her old self, the person who was about to run very quickly in the opposite direction. "Look, Kara, what's the point in all this if we don't?"

Her next words were slightly softer, "so it _was_ a proposal?"

"What? Yeah I suppose."

"So we can share a billet and keep frakking?" She rolled her eyes as Lee tried to think of a response, "right." She then stormed away into the adjoining bathroom and slammed the door shut, followed by the noise of the hatch being dogged.

Lee just stood there for a few minutes not quite sure at which point it all went wrong. After kissing the kiddies goodnight he exited the quarters, smart enough to give Kara enough time to cool down.

The officer's quarters were still abuzz with activity as he slumped into his rack, trying in vain to ignore the noises around him.

"You're late," said Stinger from his rack. "Fisk's goons have already been down here, he's gonna have your ass." Lee had already guessed as much. "Was it at least worth it?"

Damn straight it was, up until their little spat. He nodded and the turned to the pilot, "hey Stinger, you were married weren't you?"

"Yeah."

"Tell me, do you ever start understanding them?"

"Nope, and you're doubly screwed with a woman like Starbuck."

"Right, thanks."

Lee looked up at the roof of his rack, ignoring the sound of Stinger laughing, and looked up at the pictures which smiled down at him. He played over and over in his mind what had happened and could only come up with one conclusion. He had frakked it up completely and a lot of repair work was needed.

_oooo_

Kara knew the day would come when her own children could outrun her. She could barely keep up with the over eager Joseph as he padded down the busy corridor, especially as she had to carry Lena on her hip. He had barely been walking unaided for a day and already he was shooting off in front, stopping every few paces as his legs gave way and his butt hit the floor.

"Make a hole," she yelled to the gathering of crew members ahead, who spread out to let them through. Joseph was just crawling up to standing when she caught up and held his hand as he toddled off again, this time slightly more steadily. They probably didn't understand that today was their first birthday, but they sure were excited, especially as she'd told them gramps was coming to visit.

Lena gurgled in her ear, sounding irritated and pointed at her brother as if she was annoyed about having to be carried.

"You're not quite walking yet," said Kara by way of explanation. "I'd let you crawl, but remember when Roslin comes aboard you have to wear the nice dresses she got for you." Not that Lena minded wearing the dress, she seemed to love them, but Kara had at least managed to make her compromise with a blue one instead of pink.

They rounded the corner and entered the hangar deck just in time to see the raptor being hauled in. Kara felt her stomach lurch when she saw Lee standing in wait just ahead of them. Joseph tugged on her hand and squealed out making him turn around.

He smiled immediately and swooped down to pick up Joseph. "Hey there little man," he said and then his eyes locked with Kara's. "Did he walk here all on his own?"

Kara smiled at him, "yeah, practically dragged me here."

Lee stepped over to her slowly and took her hand softly into his. "Kara..." he began but the sound of Adama and Roslin exiting the raptor made them all turn their attention away.

After greeting each other they all made their way back to the quarters. Adama and Roslin were on board the ship for more than just to celebrate the twin's birthday. They were due to attend a meeting in a couple of hours with Fisk and Baltar. Kara and Lee had not been privy to the subject matter that was going to be discussed, but it sounded important.

Kara didn't even know why she had gotten so mad with him. It had been so unexpected. Not that she would ever admit it to herself, but she had imagined Lee making an over romantic mushy proposal which he had spent too much time thinking over. She hadn't imagined he would suggest it as a way so they could shack up together without interruption. Their argument had played over and over in her mind all night and it was pissing her off.

She couldn't help the furtive glances she made towards Lee, hoping to catch his eye, to let him know she was sorry for overreacting. But his attention was focused on Lena who was using his tanks to pull herself up to standing with a little assistance. Joseph, meanwhile, was exploring the room with Roslin walking closely behind. Adama was sat in quiet contemplation, watching the scene in front of him.

Kara smiled as Lena squealed happily as she landed on her butt.

"Hey don't worry, you'll catch up with your brother," said Lee helping her up again. "You were sick for ages remember." But Lena didn't seem satisfied with that, a look of determination on her face. "You look exactly like your mother when you're concentrating," he said as she lifted herself up again.

Their daughter made a few tentative steps with Lee holding her arms before she fell forwards. Kara just sat and watched them in silence, her eyes glancing briefly over at Adama who was still deep in thought.

"You okay sir?" she asked but he was still in deep concentration. "Sir?"

"What do you hear Starbuck?" he said turning her way.

Kara smiled, "nothing but the rain."

"How's the hand?"

Kara flexed her thumb which was still in a small splint, "I've had worse."

"That whole situation shouldn't have happened," he replied solemnly. "I apologise."

"It's fine, really, how could you have known?"

"I should have been aware of what was happening on my ships."

"We all should," replied Kara as she lifted Joseph onto her lap as he toddled over. "It was obvious something was going on, but no-one had any idea of the scale."

"Well I'm going to make sure it never happens again," and with that he stood up and walked over to Joseph, picking him up off Kara's lap. "They deserve more for their first birthday, we all do."

Kara frowned, not quite sure what he meant. The worry marks were evident upon his brow but he carried on bouncing Joseph on his hip and then swished him around as if he was a viper making the tot squeal with delight.

For the rest of the visit Adama was the same, mysteriously quiet and contemplative. Whatever was eating at him, he wasn't willing to share with them. After a couple of hours he disappeared with Roslin to the secret meeting leaving Kara and Lee alone.

Joseph was snuggled in his mother's arms, exhausted from running around and Lena was still on the floor determined to walk about.

"It seems like yesterday when they were born," said Kara.

"I wish I'd been there."

"Me too," she replied adjusting Joseph on her hip. "I was frakking terrified, didn't help that two cylons tried to kill me first."

"Don't Kara."

She felt the heat to rush to her cheeks and for a few moments she didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry about last night," she said finally, her face contrite.

Lee's face softened and he walked slowly towards her, stroking back her hair and placed a kiss to her brow. "I care about you Kara. I couldn't bear it if anything happened to you."

"We picked the wrong career," replied Kara with a small smile. "Talking of which, don't you have a CAP to fly?"

Lee glanced at his watch, "frak, yeah I do."

"I'll be relieving you in three hours, but I'll finish at nine."

"Can I see you after?"

"I'll be expected to see you here with the kiddies."

Their kiss was brief and then he was gone leaving Kara all alone. Fortunately Lee seemed to have forgiven her for the way she had reacted to his proposal, but then again he seemed to have completely forgotten about it, which made the sinking feeling of disappointment return to her stomach.

_oooo_

The problem with flying a CAP was it gave a pilot far too much time to sit and think. It could be extremely frustrating and Lee had found himself cursing loudly into his helmet, which had only succeeded in causing spittle to fly onto the visor. He could only come to one conclusion, he'd frakked things up. Kara hadn't run yet, but it was clear she wasn't willing to broach the subject again. The most annoying thing was that he had planned a proposal in his head, back when he had first found out about their children. He'd had it all planned, a perfect night out on Cloud Nine and then he would take her out onto the fake green lawn which they had laid out on together so many years ago, before she had drenched him with the hose. Then he would pop the question. Now he had probably ruined it.

"Frak," he shouted into his helmet again just before the Pegasus sounded in his ear. He turned on his comm system, "Pegasus, Apollo, I copy you."

"The next CAP is just launching, do your last sweep and prepare to come in," said Hoshi.

"Copy that Pegasus," said Lee with a sigh. He could imagine Kara now, sitting in her viper as it was towed into the launch tube and waiting before the g-forces took hold and the viper was thrown out into space.

He landed as her viper began its first sweep around the fleet. He was barely concentrating as the deckhands went through the motions, ticking off his landing checklist without even looking. It wasn't until he was walking across the deck that he saw his father standing up on the gangway looking down. He climbed up the steep steps quickly and took a position next to him, looking down at the commotion below.

"Laura's sitting with the kids," said Adama.

Lee nodded, "are you going to tell me what that meeting was about?"

"I had another complaint from Fisk. You were late to your quarters again last night. I thought I told you two to be more subtle."

"It's not quite what you think dad," replied Lee, still staring down at the deck. "I would've been back on time but we had an argument."

"After Fisk contacted me I expected you two to be behaving differently today."

"What do you mean?"

"You both seemed distracted. What happened?"

"I proposed," confessed Lee and he could feel his father turn towards him. "It didn't go quite to plan, well, I didn't plan to do it at all."

"And it shocked her?"

"I don't think she was too happy that I suggested it as a way of sharing a billet at night."

"I see," replied Adama and then turned back to stare at the deck. There was a pause before he spoke again, "did I ever tell you how I proposed to your mother?"

"Erm, no, the only stories you used to tell me were about flying a viper. That story about the cylon war kept me awake at night for months."

Adama chuckled, "it was a true story. Anyway, we were out for dinner when your mother told me she was three months pregnant with you. My response was "well I suppose we should get married then.""

"What did she say to that?"

"She said yes and that was it."

"Oh. No offence dad, but that doesn't really help, Kara didn't say yes."

"And you know what happened to us, we got married for the wrong reasons."

"But I don't want to get married just so we can share a billet. I love her."

"And I loved your mother, but I don't know what she really wanted when she said yes," he paused. "Try again, but do a better job of it this time."

Lee laughed, "I don't think I could do much worse, apart from cuffing her to a viper until she says yes."

Adama turned to him, "just remember who you're going to propose to, good luck son." He then walked away silently, leaving Lee alone on the gangway.

He looked back down at the deck and sighed. He needed to fix this and quickly. Looking down he suddenly had an idea. He sprinted down the steps back to the main deck.

"Hey, Chief," he shouted out. "Can you do me big favour?"

_oooo_

Kara was exhausted when she finally got the go ahead to make for home. She wanted nothing more than to see her children on their special day, tuck them in to the little cribs and then try and make some amends with Lee.

She landed with her usual precision and waited as the deckhands slowly attached their equipment to tow her viper in. She pushed her canopy back and pulled off her helmet, which was promptly taken. She wasn't in the mood for talking to her deckhand and started ticking off her checklist without even glancing up.

The hangar was unusually quiet for 2100 hours. Normally there would be people still milling about everywhere. The silence was eerie.

"Anya, where the frak..." began Kara but as she turned her head there wasn't a deckhand standing at the top of the ladder. "Lee, what...?" He was standing there, a stupid grin on his face and she felt her heart start to race. She was suddenly very aware that there were only a few crew members around, all of whom were looking over intently at them.

"Kara..."

"Lee," she warned, really uncertain about what he was going to do.

"I'm not moving until you hear me out," he said still grinning. "Kara, I love you." She felt her heart race again and her face started to blush. "And I'm sorry about last night, that wasn't how I wanted to ask you."

"It's fine, really," she replied and stood up in the cockpit.

Lee held up his hand, "I'm not finished. I don't want us to have to hide this anymore. I don't care if everyone here frakking knows it. I'll scream it out to the entire frakking ship!" His voice was getting louder and Kara eyes opened wider in disbelief.

"Lee, you're crazy."

"I don't care," he grinned. "KARA THRACE..."

"Lee, sssh!" she shouted out with a wide smile and stepped over the canopy so that she standing only one step away from him. He was embarrassing the frak out of them, but she couldn't help but love the look of eagerness on his face. "This is beyond insane."

"And I'll keep shouting until you agree to marry me." She didn't know quite how to respond and she could feel tears pooling in her eyes. "I warned you, KARA THRACE, WILL..."

She darted forward quickly, placing a firm kiss to his lips, her hands cupping his face. When she pulled away he was looking at her intently.

"Is that a yes?"

She kissed him firmly again and then suddenly he lunged forwards hoisting her over his shoulder. Kara couldn't help the squeal that escaped her lips as he lifted her up off her feet and started to walk down the ladder.

"Frak, Lee, put me down!"

"Nope."

She struggled briefly as he walked across the deck and then gave up, but then he didn't put her down when he walked through into the corridors.

"Lee, put me down."

"No way, I'm getting you back to quarters before you change your mind."

"I won't!"

"Not going to take that risk."

As he walked her through the corridors, many faces turned their way. "Fisk will have our asses for this."

"I'll just tell him you fainted."

"Sure, right, really believable Lee."

Lee didn't relent, walking them all the way to the quarters. Meg ducked out quickly, bemused by their entrance and informing them that the kiddies were already asleep, having been exhausted after such a busy day.

Lee lifted her up off his shoulder and dropped her down gently onto the bed. His heart melted as she smiled up at him.

"Are you sure?" he asked as he pulled her up by her arms so she was sitting. "You didn't just say yes because you were under duress?"

She reached forward and kissed him, "I didn't actually say yes Lee." He felt his stomach drop as if he had stepped off a tall building, his face looking forlorn. Kara grinned, "Frak Lee, you're so easy."

Lee looked aghast and then quickly pulled her hips forward so she flew back down on the bed with a guffaw. "I'm so going to get you for that."

"Mmmn? Your face was a picture."

He lay down next to her, curled up against her side and stroked a finger down her face, over the cheekbone that was flushed as she smiled up at him. "Shall we do it soon?"

"What do _you_ want?"

"I always imagined something small and secluded, just us and close family. Of course when I imagined it, I was back on Caprica and the sun was shining and warm."

"That sounds just right. It's the summer season down the planet so we could do it in a few days."

"I'll tell dad," replied Lee and placed a kiss to her lips which she responded to, arching her back off the bed. His hand trailed down the side of her body and over her hip before moving back up again, raising her tanks over her navel. Pulling away from the kiss he moved his lips to her stomach, placing kisses and tracing a line with his tongue.

She gasped in return, arching her back higher and inviting more. "Gods, Lee!"

Sitting up quickly, Kara pushed away Lee's shirt and bit down gently on his shoulder before removing the shirt completely and then his tanks. Their lips met in a slow caress, their bodies moving closely together. Tearing their clothes asunder they slowly laid down on the bed, their legs entwined as slowly they pleasured each other.

Lee rubbed his thumb firmly across her nub, making her gasp, moving her hips up to meet him.

"I want you, now," she whispered as shockwaves hit her.

He didn't need asking twice, rolling them so he was in-between her legs, just hovering above until slowly he entered her. Their rhythm was slow, devouring each other gradually. Bit by bit they moved faster as the pressure grew between them.

Kara let out a moan as she rolled them over, taking a position above, straddling him with a smile. They paused briefly and then slowly and torturously she started to grind her hips against him. He rose up towards her, stroking his hands down the sides of her waist as she moved, their rhythm getting faster and faster until the pleasure washed through them in a wave of ecstasy.

As her body came down from its high, she leant forwards so her lips could reach his in a soft but firm kiss. Their bodies entwined, they fell into a light sleep.


	47. The Mission

Chapter 46

Lee felt jubilant as he walked down the corridors of the Galactica, nodding to various crew members who he passed and bouncing on high as he walked. His father had summoned him on board for a meeting, but he had been meaning to come over anyway. He had yet to tell him about the engagement to Kara and had kept the happy secret for three days. They planned to perform the ceremony as soon as possible.

He rapped on the hatch to Adama's quarters, waiting for the gruff "come in," before walking inside. Adama was sat behind his desk and Lee was surprised to see Fisk sitting the other side, trying his best to hide the displeasure at his scuppered plans.

"Morning," he said cordially. "You sent for me?"

He was slightly perplexed that Fisk hadn't shared a raptor with him for the journey over, especially considering their limited Tylium supply.

"Take a seat Major," said Adama, showing him that they were on formal terms for now. Lee nodded and took a seat. "Thank you for coming at such short notice."

"What's going on?" asked Lee, though he had a feeling he was about to find out anyway.

"As you are aware, I had a meeting with the President three days ago," he began. "Due to recent events in the fleet we have decided that the fleet needs hope, something to work towards."

"I agree sir," said Lee.

"I didn't ask you here for your opinion, but I appreciate it. The decision has already been made. In two weeks Commander Fisk will be taking the Pegasus beyond the nebula and resuming the search for Earth."

Lee didn't respond this time. He was shocked that the result of one meeting was such a massive decision. He didn't know quite what to think. One thing was certain, it would be risky.

"I take it from your silence that you were not expecting this?" asked Adama.

Lee paused before finally speaking, "so the entire crew of the Pegasus will be detached from the fleet, leaving only the Galactica behind to protect the planet?"

"Not the entire crew," replied Adama. "This mission is risky and voluntary for both crews, which is why I have called you here."

"Me?"

"Colonel Garner has already decided to stay with the fleet. Commander Fisk has shortlisted you for the position of interim XO."

"Me?"

"It was a short list," added Fisk. Lee was still completely taken aback. He and Fisk had clashed a lot recently, and had half expected to be thrown into the brig at any moment. "It was either you or someone Garner threw back to doing kitchen duty." Lee nodded, he was aware that they disliked Kendra Shaw even more than they disliked him and Kara. "You'll keep the rank of Major for now, but I'll be expecting you to act with the proper decorum of an XO."

Lee couldn't help but smirk slightly, knowing exactly what Fisk was referring to.

"Which, while I'm here," Fisk continued. "I wanted to bring up this subject again …"

Adama nodded his head in understanding, "I'm well aware of your complaints Commander and plan on addressing them. Do you have anything to say Major?"

Lee raised his eyes towards his father, "yes sir, I would like your permission to get married to Major Thrace." He could see the emotion well up in the old man's eyes. His words sounded like an official request, but the old man clearly understood that his son was really asking for his approval.

"Permission granted, will that satisfy you Commander?"

Fisk muttered a curse under his breath before saying, "under fleet regulations that is acceptable."

In his mind, Lee had a large grin on his face, but he kept his face neutral, "thank you sir."

"And what about the mission?" asked Adama.

"Do I really get a choice?"

"Yes, this will be purely voluntary and risky. You'll be on your own out there with the cylons."

"It's not just up to me sir. I'm not going to leave the kids behind if Ka…if Major Thrace wants to stay."

Adama nodded, "You have until tomorrow when I'll be addressing the crew. I will also be making Sharon Agathon a full member of this crew. She's already volunteered for the mission along with Helo."

"You're not serious?" asked Lee incredulously. "On the Pegasus?"

For a moment he forgot he was sitting next to Fisk who shifted in his seat. "She will be treated as a full member of my crew, Major," he said.

"If you'd excuse us Commander," interrupted Adama. Fisk looked ready to argue back but he rose to his feet sharply and stormed out of the quarters after saluting. When he was gone, the old man turned to his son, "Lee…"

"I'm sorry dad, but I've seen what they've done to cylon prisoners on the Beast, it's inhumane."

"You forget Lee that I'm intending to merge the two crews. She'll have the backing of the Galactica crew and Fisk." Adama paused to let him know that was the end of the matter and Lee could see the emotion in his face again. "She said yes?"

Lee grinned, "yeah."

"Congratulations son."

"Thanks, we're planning on going down to the planet and getting a priest by the end of the week. Will you be there next to me?"

Adama sniffed, "it will be an honour. Your mother would have loved to see it too."

Lee chuckled warmly, "she didn't exactly warm to Kara when they met."

"Your mother was a different woman then, they both were. She would be happy for you."

Lee looked down at his hands and reflected for a moment on how many people they had lost in the attacks and the years after. He wasn't sure if was prepared to see more lose their lives, what if it was Kara who was shot down next?

"What is it Lee?"

"It's a risky mission dad, why now?"

"Because I believe the fleet will die, regardless of whether or not the cylons find us. As crazy as Baltar is, he's right. The fleet will most certainly die out if we do not start procreating within the next few years on a large scale. The fleet is also on the brink of a rebellion far greater than Zarek's sorry attempt."

"The fleet's falling apart," observed Lee.

"We no longer have the urgent need for survival pushing us along, especially amongst the people on the Battlestars. I'm giving the fleet something to hope for again."

"And if it fails?"

"Then we'll have to hope Baltar's other measures actually work."

His father was looking older by the day, a fresh moustache starting to grow. He needed a war too, but then he would be staying behind. Apart from the riskiness of the mission, Lee also feared that he would never see his father, alive, again.

_oooo_

It would remain a mystery to Kara, how the simple task of feeding a toddler could create so much mess. Either they would turn away from the spoon at the last moment, sending the gloop up their cheek or they would take it into their mouth only to dribble most of it out again down their front. All this they did with a look of being most entertained.

"Come on kiddo," she said as Lena twisted her head away, far more interested in what her brother was doing then in eating. Kara sighed, giving up and throwing the spoon into the bowl. "Come on, mom has work to do."

Not that anything was pressingly urgent. All they did now was fly endless CAP after CAP, their usefulness becoming redundant. It was depressingly dull. The only excitement coming from combat training exercises, at least then the adrenalin would start to pump around her body. She looked at her children as she guided them out of the quarters and they toddled by her side, gripping onto her hand. They were never bored, amused by everyone and anything.

After dropping them off at the little nursery, she walked to the Ready room where everyone was already sat out in the chairs waiting for her.

"At ease," she said and poured herself a cup of coffee before standing behind the lectern. Looking at them all she could see the same boredom in their eyes, wondering who would be next to crack like Sykes. "Do I even need to say it?" she said to the room.

"CAP as always sir?" replied Showboat from the back of the room.

"Exactly, the cookie goes to Showboat"

"That's if there _were_ any cookies," added Stinger. "Seriously sir, those people on the surface need to get their heads out of their asses and start producing more food."

"I'll be sure to pass that on Captain," replied Kara with a yawn. She looked at her watch and the clock in the room, which were perfectly in sync as always. "The time is 0918 hours for the start of the briefing." She took another sip of her coffee before speaking again. "You guys know the drill, normal CAP rotation. Remember to stay frosty out there, you never know when the cylons will decide to drop in and say hi."

"Cause they've been known to do that over the past year," smirked Stinger.

Kara wanted nothing more than to agree with the former CAG, but she showed restraint. "We're pilots in the Colonial Fleet people, it's our job to protect the rest of the fleet, so keep on your toes, there's no room for frak ups. On a more fun note, we have our training exercise worked out for next Monday to hone your combat skills. Nuggets from both ships will be set against the more experienced pilots and then you'll all get a shot at trying to shoot down the squadron leaders and yours truly." At last the room seemed to look slightly more alert and interested in the prospect of playing war. But their excitement was soon lost again as the normal formalities continued.

Predictably, the rest of the briefing was dull before Kara dismissed everyone. She then set about updating the pilots' board and drawing up the next rota.

"Hey," she heard suddenly from the back of the room and turned to see Lee standing there, his blue eyes bright in the light of the room.

"That was quick," she replied and chucked her pen down on the lectern, turning to him with a smile.

"It was a brief meeting. Do we have time for a chat?"

Kara hated those words. A "chat" was generally something she tried to avoid, usually because it entailed her having to face a subject she would rather run from. But she trusted Lee. "Sure," she said and motioned to the seats and Lee joined her, taking her hand into his. "Did you tell the old man? Was he angry?"

"He was happy Kara, very. But that's not what I need to ask you about."

"Okay," she said tentatively. "But I can't be held responsible if I listen and then decide to run through that bulkhead."

Lee chuckled, "it's nothing bad I promise, just something I've been asked to do."

Kara listened with a slight frown as he told her about the meeting and the mission, only speaking when he had finished. "What did you decide?"

"I haven't. I said it's not just up to me."

"Oh. Right."

"Helo and Sharon have already volunteered and I think my dad will be talking to certain key crew members individually, but then everyone else will be asked tomorrow."

"And what do you want to do?" she asked.

"I'm not sure, it's a big decision, which is why I came to you."

"Lee, I think you and I both know that I'm not the best person for making rational decisions."

"Please Kara, if anything happened….if any happened to you and I forced you to go…I…"

"I understand." She paused for a moment, sitting and thinking over the ramifications of such a mission. It was at least another ten minutes before she spoke again. "Did I ever tell you how I ended up teaching at the academy?"

"Weird place to start, but no you didn't."

"I got into trouble on the Triton, not because I went out of my way to cause trouble, but because I got bored and complacent. All we did was endless CAP after endless CAP, much like we're doing now. I got rude and abrasive and stopped thinking about my actions before I did them."

"Sounds familiar."

Kara smiled, "well I managed to piss off the Commander, so she stuck me supervising some of the nuggets and apparently I had a flare for it. After my year on board was up she wanted me off the ship and made sure no-one else wanted me either, but she find a position at the academy. I think she thought grounding me might keep me out of trouble."

"So it was half punishment, half honour?"

"I suppose. Turns out she was right and at least I still got to fly and use the combat SIMs every day, gave me something to wake up for."

"So what's that got to do with this mission?"

"I'm saying if we go on like this, it's only a matter of time before people, including me, start frakking up. I need to get out of this endless cycle and if you'd asked me over a year ago if I wanted to go on a mission like this, then I would have said _frak yeah, _bring it on."

"And now?" asked Lee with a frown.

"Part of me needs to get out there Lee, but there's another part of me, the part that's so different now. There are other things that mean so much more to me than the adrenalin rush of combat."

"So you think we should stay?"

Kara could hear the slight disappointment in his voice, "I don't know. If we go, the cylons could attack. I'm not afraid to lay down my life, but Lena and Seph… But on the other hand, staying and orbiting around New Caprica, we're like sitting ducks and it's only a matter of time before the cylons find us and then we're really frakked. So I don't know. I'm stuck between wanting to protect them and needing to get out there and fight for their protection. What do _you _want to do?"

"Before the other week I had no idea how quickly the fleet was falling apart. This mission, finding Earth, is still our only hope." He paused for a moment and squeezed her hand. "And I don't think we can do that without you."

Kara frowned, "what do you mean?"

"I've never been much of a believer in Pythia and the Sacred Scrolls, you know that, but what I've seen and been witness to in the past few years has made me believe that you are the key."

Kara didn't know what to say. Flashes of Leoben and her mother came to her mind, telling her she had a special destiny. "Wow Lee, that's uh…"

"Deep? Kara, you took down an entire baseship singlehandedly."

"I still don't know how I did that, remember?" Sometimes she still dreamt of the chaos of voices that had bombarded her mind before everything went black, but she still couldn't make out any individual words or make any sense of what happened.

"Also," Lee began, "and this may sound crazy, but back when I was on the Pegasus without you, for some reason, I just knew where you were. You led me back. Do you know when I had this revelation? About six months before I found you."

She looked into his dazzling blue eyes and knew what he believed. She had felt it too, felt that he was still alive when everyone else thought he was dead. It hadn't been a desperate belief, she had felt it in every facet of her soul.

Leaning forwards, she placed a kiss to his lips. "Then it's decided, we go. Wouldn't want to get in the way of my special destiny," she said with a grin.

She then leant her head onto Lee's shoulder, hiding her slight frown. She had grown up hearing her mother's incessant ramblings about her supposed "special destiny." To her it sounded more like a bad name for a cover band. She had suffered for it, grown up thinking she was being punished for it and considered it to be a curse.

Now she was going to face it head on and she was terrified of how much more she would have to suffer for it. Or worse, she feared how much the people she loved would suffer.

_oooo_

Kara stood at the doorway to Helo's quarters, watching as he chased little Hera around the room. It was the following day after hearing about the mission and she had been summoned on board the Galactica along with Fisk and Lee in order to address the crew. She hadn't been told officially yet, but she guessed she would be maintaining her role as the Pegasus' CAG.

Watching the room, she laughed as the toddler ran underneath the table making Helo hit his head as he tried to follow her.

"Not funny Starbuck," he said rubbing his head. "Care to give me a hand?"

"It's far more entertaining to stand here and watch."

"Thanks Starbuck that's really helpful." He turned his attention to his daughter, "come out Hera, you have to go nursery." But the tot just laughed back.

Kara walked up to the table and bent down to see Hera. The little girl looked at her, squeaked, and ran out towards her father and hid behind him.

"Well that worked," said Kara standing up.

"Thanks," replied Helo and lifted his daughter onto his hip.

"So I hear you and Sharon have volunteered for the Pegasus mission."

"It was Sharon's decision, the old man wanted a cylon expert. How about you?"

"We've decided to go too."

"Hey that's great," said Helo and then looked at her. "What is it? You look like you want to ask me something."

Kara smiled, "what're you doing tomorrow?"

"I hear Baltar is planning some sort of big party to boost morale, or planning just to get people drunk enough to like him again. I doubt Sharon would be welcome so I'll probably stay here."

"Fancy taking a trip down to the planet with me?"

"What's the occasion?"

Kara grinned, "I'm getting married."

Helo's face lit up immediately, "about time."

Kara playfully rolled her eyes, "You know I never like to do things the simple way."

"I'm really happy for you. Who'd have thought that we'd both end up married with kids huh?"

"Well, we both did it the wrong way round, so it's not totally out of character."

They walked together down the A shaped halls of the Galactica, making their way to the nursery. The ship was a lot more claustrophobic than the Pegasus and Kara could see why the Beast was considered the best ship for the mission. But the Galactica would always feel more homely and welcoming to her, the crew like a little family.

A few hours later and the entire ship gathered in the hangar deck. This was Adama's place of choice for addressing the crew for a funeral or for a motivational speech. Kara and Lee stood at his side, with Laura on the other as he took his position in front of the eager looking crew. He paused to look at them all.

"Over the years since the cylons took away our Worlds I have come to think of each and every one of you as my family," he began in his booming voice which sent a small tingle up Kara's arm. "We have fought together, survived together and mourned together. I am proud to call myself the Admiral of the best and bravest fleet there has ever been in the history of the Twelve Colonies. But I fear I have let you down. I made a promise to you all. I promised you Earth. Many of you question the truth of my words all those years ago, wonder if I was just giving you all the gift of hope, a hope which I abandoned when we found this new world. But I tell you this, it does exist! Many of you thought Kobol was also a myth, but we found her, and on that planet we stood on the face of Earth and looked up to see her 12 brothers looking down. Earth is out there and I intend to find it."

Kara found herself reaching her little pinky finger out so she could secretly touch Lee's hand. Discreetly he moved slightly sideways towards her so he could take her hand fully into his. They looked at each other briefly before Adama continued.

"I am giving you back your hope. As of next week the Pegasus will be leaving the rest of the fleet with a Tylium ship for two years and continuing the search for Earth." He paused as there were many murmurings between the crew members. "I'm giving you all a choice. You can stay here or go with the Pegasus."

He turned to Kara and nodded. Letting go of Lee's hand she stepped forward and walked down the middle of the hangar deck, a roll of tape in her hand. With a loud noise that echoed around the room she attached the end of the tape to the floor and walked back to Adama, making a long line across the floor.

"I don't expect you all to make your decisions now, but you need to start thinking. All those who volunteer for the mission stand to my left over the line," said Adama and motioned his arm. "All the rest stand to my right. If you are undecided, stay in the middle for now but I expect your answer within a day."

He stepped down from his lectern as an indicator that he was finished. Everyone seemed to look at themselves for a moment, undecided on what to do. Kara and Lee led the room, walking together past the line and standing to the left. Helo then joined them, but Laura stepped onto the right hand side. Then suddenly the whole room moved.

Kara held onto Lee's hand as the room surged, intermingling with each other and then splitting into two. No-one stayed in the middle and only a few dozen went to the right. Kara saw Cottle walk reluctantly to the right and then nod at Adama, thinking that those two must have come to some sort of agreement. The fleet still needed a doctor. It was mainly the elder members of the crew who had decided to stay, including Tigh and his wife, but there were a few surprises. The Chief and Cally had walked to the right along with Gaeta. Kara had expected to see the majority of the pilots stepping up, like her, they needed the fight.

"It's going to be a full ship," she whispered to Lee.

"Someone can have my bunk," he replied with a smile.

The room went silent as Adama stood on the lectern again. He seemed to look emotional as he looked down at Lee and then at the room. "I'll expect you _all_ back in two years with the location of Earth and lots of stories to tell."

"So say we all!" shouted out the Chief from the right side of the room.

"So say we all!" repeated Adama, which was echoed around the room as everyone continued to shout.

Kara gripped firmly onto Lee's hand as she felt the hope bubbling inside her again, making a silent prayer to the Gods that her "special destiny" wouldn't come at too high a price.

_oooo_

Lee tugged at the collar of his tunic for what seemed like the millionth time. He was excited and happy, but he also felt clammy from nervously sweating. He had imagined a day like today for years but could never have imagined he would actually get to marry the woman of his dreams. He had been in relationships with other women, but none of them he had loved as deeply as he did Kara.

"You look about ready to keel over," said Helo who was standing next to him, both of them looking out over the fleet encampment towards the area where raptors would land. Since they had been looking, two had landed, but they weren't sure if Kara was in one of them.

"I _feel_ like I'm about to keel over," replied Lee and pulled at the neck of his tunic again. "Frak, do they make these things this tight on purpose?"

"Try getting married in one _and_ having a stinking hangover," replied Helo. Lee pulled at the bottom of his dress uniform sash, trying to adjust it so it was more comfortable. "You're not having cold feet are you?"

"What? No, not at all."

"Just scared she won't show then?"

Lee pulled at his collar, "a little, Kara _is_ a known flight risk."

Helo laughed briefly, "she'll be here, probably in slacks though, but she'll be more comfy than you."

"It wouldn't matter to me if she turned up in her gym kit."

They paused as they continued to look out over the encampment. It was a few minutes before Helo spoke again. "I feel it's my duty to warn you that if you hurt her, I'll hunt you down and break your legs."

"Nice to know, thanks. But no offence, Kara would do a lot worse first."

They paused again, neither one knowing what to say to each other. Helo had always been Kara's friend. Lee barely knew him and wasn't sure if he had been forgiven for shoving a gun into his pregnant future wife's face, the third time they had met.

"I hear Sharon is being made a member of the crew again, it's about time," he said at last. "If they're any problems on the Pegasus let me know."

"Thanks," replied Helo simply.

Lee felt his stomach turning somersaults as he waited, glancing at his watch and seeing Kara was twenty minutes late. He continued to tug at his collar until finally he saw a flash of blonde in the distance coming his way. He smiled broadly as she neared, a look of enthrallment on his face, which glancing to his side, he saw Helo sharing.

"Well I never thought I'd see the day," said Helo and Lee remembered that he had missed Colonial Day.

As she got close, with Adama, Roslin and the kiddies by her side, he could see her fully. She was wearing a long silken white gown that slightly trailed on the floor behind her. It was simple but flattering and her hair was slightly curled.

"Sorry we're late, Joseph decided he needed the head again," said Adama as Kara walked up and took Lee's hands into hers. She was glowing, with the hint of a mischievous glint in her eye.

"You look shocked Lee," she said with a grin, her eyes focused on his.

Lee nearly stuttered as he replied, "I thought seeing you in a dress was a once in a lifetime opportunity."

Kara shrugged, "well I figured as we've had a funeral and all."

Lee kissed the top of her forehead and then they turned to the priest, their hands still entwined. The priest nodded his head and then began.

"We are here today to witness the joining together of Kara and Lee in their sacred union. There are too few days like today since the end of our worlds and exodus from the Twelve Colonies. It therefore gives me great joy to see a union between two young people who have already been blessed with two children. This union is made before the Lords of Kobol and whomsoever they choose to unite let no-one else separate."

Kara and Lee kept their focus on each other as the priest went through the initial formalities and then addressed them directly.

"I now ask you both to make your vows to each other. You are already holding hands, so I only ask you both to turn to each other now. Do you, Leland Joseph Adama, son of William and Carolann, take this woman to be your wife? To love her, cherish her and promise to be faithful to her until death parts you."

"I do."

"And do you, Kara Elena Thrace, daughter of Dreilide and Socrata, take this man to be your husband? To love him, cherish him and in the witness of the Gods, promise to be faithful to him until death parts you?"

"I do."

"Then it gives me great pleasure to announce that under the laws of the Twelve Colonies and in the witness of the Lords of Kobol, you are now husband and wife."

Their kiss was soft, their foreheads flush together before they turned and laughed at the whistle that came from Helo. They had attracted a large crowd of colonials, including members of crew that had come down for Baltar's festivities.

The celebrations around the encampment started quickly, the drinks soon flowing and the music playing as soon as Baltar finished speaking. Kara and Lee had chosen to miss his speech, choosing to put Lena and Joseph down to sleep in a tent that had been allocated to them for the night. Megan was also down on the surface to look after them for the evening.

Kara and Lee spent most of the night dancing amongst the other colonials before sneaking off away from the camp and towards the edge of the lake.

"You've got to give Baltar some credit," said Lee as he laid out his tunic so they could sit down out of the dust. "He sure knows how to throw a party." They could still hear the sound of music and laughter from far out where they were.

"Earth had better be warmer than this," said Kara as she snuggled into his side. Lee placed his arm around her and placed a kiss to her head. "You're amazing, you know that?"

"I do have a special destiny," she responded and planted a kiss to his lips.

They were silent for a moment as they watched out over the calm waters, which Lee considered to be the only real beauty on the desolate planet.

"I've got something for you," he said. "I know we agreed not to try and haggle with the black market for rings, so I got these made." Out of his pocket he pulled out two rings and held them out in his open palm.

Kara looked shocked, "how'd you manage to get them made?"

"You have Chief Tyrol to thank for that. He made them out of some spare parts."

"Really?" she asked and took one hold of one. They were the same size and looked identical, apart from a very slight difference in colour.

"Do you remember when you saved my life by pushing my viper to the deck?"

"How could I forget, you said I was beyond insane."

"You were. Anyway, the Chief kept a few damaged parts from the undercarriage of our vipers for prosperity."

"I wondered where that went," said Kara with a smile as she turned the ring over with her hand.

"That one's from your ship."

Kara reached out and took hold of his dogtags. She undid the clasp and then slid on the ring before clipping it back together. "Can you promise me something?" she asked.

"Anything, you know that."

"Don't let me do anything crazy."

Lee chuckled slightly, "you mean anything crazier than usual?"

But then Kara looked at him seriously, "please Lee, just promise me if I ask you to pull me back, you'll do it."

Lee tilted her chin up towards him, "I promise," and then he placed another kiss to her lips.

Kara grinned, "Just be prepared for a lot of attitude." She playfully pushed him backwards so his back landed on the floor and position herself above him, swooping in for a kiss.

Lee reached up and began to lift her dress above her knees and then up and over her head, pushing himself up so he could place a soft kiss to her breast bone. He had known what Kara had meant, had seen the fear in her eyes as she asked him to make that promise. He feared the same thing too, could feel it bubbling inside of him. But tonight he left that worry behind. Tonight it was only about the two of them as she pulled the tanks from over his head and pulled down his slacks. They were both exposed to the cool night air, the sound of the lake lapping behind them as Kara lowered herself down onto him, beginning a gentle rhythm. Reaching up, Lee stroked a hand down between his wife's breasts as she panted above him.

For tonight the fates of the worlds could wait.


	48. The Unknown

Chapter 47

Kara tapped her pen against her clipboard impatiently, dismayed that a bunch of pilots, who were supposed to be experts in formation flying, seemed incapable of moving their belongings from one ship to the other.

"Hey," she shouted out at Hotdog as he dropped his box of belongings to the deck. He looked at her contritely, but the annoyed look on her face was enough to make anyone want to run away fast.

"Sorry Starbuck," he said quickly and then scrambled everything back into the box.

The last few days had been chaotic enough, with trying to reorganise the ship so everyone could fit, but today was the main moving day and complete and utter anarchy was the only way to describe it. Kara was ready to smack someone hard over the head with her clipboard.

They also had to move supplies and find space for them. The Chief had spent hours moving around the craft on the hangar deck to make room for the extra vipers and raptors. Fortunately, the Pegasus was larger than the Galactica and could fit more in.

"Hurry it up Hotdog," she shouted out as the unfortunate lieutenant sent his pyramid ball bouncing across the deck. "You're in officer's quarters two, there's a bunk ready and a locker."

As the Pegasus had lost a large majority of their crew, there were a number of free bunks, especially in the officer's quarters. It was still going to be a tight squeeze though, with extra put-up beds erected in some of the bunk rooms. But no-one seemed to be complaining, they were all too eager to get out there and meet their enemy head on.

Kara turned away from the fumbling Hotdog as she saw the hatch of another raptor opening up. She ticked off Kat, Racetrack, Duck and Skulls off her list as they disembarked. They each stopped in front of her and saluted.

"At ease," she replied with a shake of her head. "The Beast isn't _that_ formal." They all relaxed and took a look around them. Many had never spent much time on board the Pegasus and they looked at it as if it was all shiny and new. "Kat, you're taking Apollo's old bunk in the senior officer's quarters"

"Thank you sir," she replied and started to walk away.

"Kat," said Kara a little quieter. "I didn't say this, but watch your back in there."

The Captain nodded her head in understanding and then walked away across the deck. Kara had settled in on the Pegasus now, having been there for months, but she was still weary around some of the crew members, especially with those who had shown their unwavering loyalty to Cain and her ideals.

"Racetrack and Skulls," she continued, "you're in officer's quarters three. I'm afraid you're going to have to fight it out over who gets the last bunk and who gets the put-up."

The two lieutenants looked at each other and then dashed across the deck, evidently choosing to race it out. Racetrack looked to be winning. She was fast and well worthy of her callsign. Kara turned to Duck who was the only one left.

"You're in luck," she said. "Cain didn't allow any the crew to form relationships, so there's a billet for you and Nora."

"Thank you sir," he replied with a small smile. "I hear congratulations are in order for you too."

Kara nodded her head above her clipboard, "married quarters six, just follow the corridors until you can hear the nursery."

Duck nodded and then walked away across the deck. Kara had been a little surprised that he had volunteered for the mission. After his marriage to Nora everyone had expected him to request a transfer down to the planet.

She scanned her eyes around the busy and noisy hanger deck and quietly cursed to herself. No-one seemed able to organise themselves. All she had to do was ensure her pilots got to where they were meant to be, but at this rate she was going to end up organising it all.

"Chief, what the frak is this?" she yelled, pointing to a pile of boxes.

"Erm, food supplies sir, from the planet."

"Well what the frak is it doing here in the middle of the deck?"

"Some deckhands offloaded them from a raptor."

"And no-one thought to put them where they're supposed to be?"

Laird shrugged and then carried on directing a viper that was being towed in. Kara sighed and hauled two boxes into her arms, tossing her clipboard on top. She walked unsteadily out of the hangar deck and made her way down the crowded corridors. Everywhere, there were boxes stacked up high, most of which, Kara imagined, would remain there for the duration of the two year mission.

She booted open the kitchen door abruptly, shouting "make a hole" to the kitchen staff before dumping the boxes on top of a large work surface.

"What are _they_?" asked a woman with a slightly accented voice, which was sharp and full of distain.

Kara stared the woman down. She was pretty and slight, but looked as if she permanently carried a very large chip on her shoulder. Kara guessed this must be the infamous Kendra Shaw who had once been a key member of Cain's crew, but had then been knocked down to kitchen duty. "Food supplies, and there's plenty more down on the hangar deck, so why don't you get your guys to get their asses moving and bring them up here."

Shaw folded her arms in front of her chest, not at all intimidated by Kara, "why don't _you_ ask them?"

Kara smiled briefly, "do I have to make that an order or would you prefer it if I have you knocked down to latrine duty?"

The woman scoffed briefly and unfolded her arms before walking away. Kara wasn't sure if she was walking away to carry out the orders, she doubted it. Grabbing her clipboard she walked out of the kitchen and took the long way back to the deck, which took her through the living quarters area. It was complete chaos.

When she walked past the senior officer's quarters she saw Kat squaring up to Stinger. As soon as she walked up to the doorway they clocked her and moved apart. Kara privately laughed to herself, she had definitely been a bad influence on the young captain. "Is there a problem Kat?"

"No sir," she replied and stood to attention.

"At ease Captain," replied Kara and stepped into the room. "Care to tell me why you two looked as if you were about to knock heads?"

"It's nothing sir," replied Kat, her shoulders relaxing slightly, but she kept her head bowed away.

"Right." Kara wanted to sigh. Normally she would have been the first to find out everything, but now she had been the CAG for so long and out of officer's quarters, that she was kept in the dark. She glanced over their shoulders to the lockers before walking through the crowd of officers, spreading them in her wake.

"Wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that Stinger has decided to take up two lockers would it?" she continued, kicking the locker shut and then turning back to them. "I know your ego already takes up enough room Stinger so I'll make this easy for you. Move your crap or I'll have it all chucked out of the airlock."

"Yes sir," replied Stinger with a glare towards Kat.

Kara made towards the exit before turning back with a grin, "oh and Stinger, next time I will let her kick your ass."

She left the bunk room with a smirk and then made her way to her own quarters. Lee was sitting at the table with papers spread out in front of him, which she recognised as a number of standard reports. She walked in and leant her arms on top of the back of his shoulders.

"Hey," he said, stroking a hand to hers.

"Are you sure you really want to give up flying for this?" she asked with a purr and placed a kiss to his hair.

"I'm starting to wonder," he replied and threw down his pen, turning in his seat so he could see her fully. "How's moving day?"

"Don't ask. I just had to stop Kat from knocking out Stinger."

"Still insisting on using two lockers is he?"

"You knew about that?"

Lee shrugged, "when I first came on board I had nothing and didn't really care about it. He let me have a small corner once I had some uniform."

"I would've knocked his ass down."

"Mmm? Cain's ship was very different remember?"

"True, she probably would've had you out of the nearest airlock for striking a superior officer. Did you ever get your locker back to yourself?"

Lee shrugged again, "I didn't care. I had everything I wanted here."

"That's sweet Lee, really," replied Kara playfully.

"Hey," said Lee and then pulled her forward so she was in-between his legs. He lifted up her tanks slightly and then placed a soft kiss to her naval. Kara let out a soft moan.

"I think I'm going to enjoy the morning briefings with the XO," she said with a grin.

Lee lifted his head from her stomach, "actually Fisk has already reallocated that job to himself."

"Frak."

"You didn't think he would let us off that easy did you?" Kara shrugged, she had figured as much. "So how's the moving really going?"

"I'm getting close to punching somebody. Have you filled the gaps in the CIC yet?"

"Nearly, just have Hoshi's position to fill."

"Anyone fit the bill?"

"Only Kendra Shaw."

"Frak Lee, she's a liability. She makes my insubordination seem like child's play and she's on something stronger than the ambrosia."

"She's the only one qualified enough for the position."

"Don't say I didn't warn you." Lee smiled at her and then placed another kiss to her stomach making her moan again. Kara brushed her fingers through his short hair, holding him at her stomach. "Frak Lee."

"How long have you got?"

"No time at all, there's probably a bunch of nuggets standing around the hangar deck looking lost." She pouted slightly and then stepped back, wishing that she could stay. "We'll finish this later, wouldn't want to piss off Fisk this early in the mission now would I?"

_oooo_

Lee had laughed as Kara picked up her clipboard and walked out of the quarters with a grin. He turned back to his paperwork. It was difficult to concentrate when he was so aroused, wanting her back in his arms. He fidgeted slightly, trying to keep his mind focused and away from thoughts of his amazing wife. It was a near impossible task.

He fidgeted again as he looked at the deficit in the crew. Despite the large number of crew members coming on board they were still short of some key personnel. Pilots they had in abundance, but they would be redundant if there was no-one skilled enough to steer the ship straight and avoid jumping into the middle of a sun. In his opinion, Kendra Shaw was really the only choice to replace Hoshi. He was aware she was a loose cannon, but then he was used to dealing with women like that. Having two on board could prove quite explosive.

After pencilling in Shaw's name onto his report, Lee left the quarters and started to make his way towards the CIC. As he rounded the corner he came face to face with Sharon. She stopped in her tracks and looked almost shy in his presence. Lee remembered the last time he had been this close to her. How could he forget? He had held a gun up in her face.

Neither seemed to move, then suddenly Lee felt a tap on his leg. Looking down he saw Hera pulling at the knee of his slacks.

"Hey," he said with a smile and the little girl looked up at him before shying away behind her mother's leg.

"She's shy of strangers," said Sharon.

"My kids are getting to that stage too." Lee couldn't believe that he was discussing parenting with a toaster, but then again that is what made Sharon so different from the others. It was strange to see her outside the confines of her cell. "Did you find your quarters okay?"

"We're just heading there now."

"Oh right." The conversation felt so strained and part of Lee just wanted to brush past her and walk on. "If you have any problems, you come and see me or Starbuck okay?"

"Yes sir," she replied with a small smile and then walked around him.

Lee quietly sighed and then turned to her, "lieutenant."

"Yes sir?"

"You may want to think of a new callsign. I don't think the name Boomer really applies to you." Lee hoped that was enough of a white flag and was relieved when he saw her face relax slightly.

"I will," replied Sharon and then walked around the corner. Little Hera looked at Lee as she went, making a small wave.

Unlike the rest of the ship, the CIC was quiet. Fisk was stood over the schematics table, looking at a number of star charts. He nodded as Lee walked up and saluted before standing next to him.

"Do you have our first jump co-ordinates sir?" Lee asked and looked down at the star charts.

"The Admiral only wants a short jump to start with, just beyond the nebula. One of Galactica's raptors will jump with us to ensure everything is working smoothly. Then we will start to head towards the Lagoon nebula you allegedly saw in that cave."

"We did see that nebula sir. It was definitely one of the markers on the way to the Earth."

"I don't doubt that you saw it, I'm just sceptical that what you saw was really a map."

"Then if you don't mind me asking sir, why have you agreed on such a risky mission if you don't believe we actually have a map to Earth?"

"Because I need to do more than just orbit a planet until the cylons show up and there's a slim chance that your group hallucination might just point us in the right direction." He looked down at his maps and frowned. "What would you do if we found Earth? Would you want to stay there?"

"Erm, I don't know sir," Lee was a little taken aback by the personal question from such a closed off man. "I suppose one of my biggest regrets was not seeing all of the Twelve Colonies before they were destroyed, so I'd probably choose to explore a bit before settling on a place."

Fisk nodded and then turned back to his maps, his indicator that the time for personal questions was over. "Did you sort out our personnel problem?"

"Sort of sir."

"If that _sort of _involves reinstating Shaw back to her former position then you can think again, she's a liability."

"She's the only one that is really suitable for the job."

"She also had a meltdown."

"I'll make her my own personal responsibility. If she fraks up, I'll handle her," said Lee resolvedly.

Fisk gave a brief and deep chuckle, "use to handling women like that are you? Well I hear you used to keep Thrace on a tight leash when you were the CAG, so I'll release Shaw to you on probation. But believe me, if she fraks up so much as once, or turns up on duty with a fuzzy head then she's back in the kitchens."

"Yes sir."

"The same can easily go for you and your wife. I will not accept lateness or sloppiness. Cain used to run a tight ship when we were out at war and I intend to keep that up."

Lee was tempted to roll his eyes at the man. He would never run as an efficient or terrifying ship as Admiral Cain. "Yes sir."

"Right, you can take over the CIC for now, I have a meeting with the Galactica's XO in thirty minutes."

The large man then walked off. Lee knew what he really meant by "meeting with the Galactica's XO." He would be meeting with Tigh for a drinking match and exchanging ship secrets.

The CIC felt suddenly silent and Lee realised that he was in charge. He felt a sudden sinking feeling in his stomach as the nerves hit home. Sure he had been in charge of a room full of pilots before, but this time he was responsible for the entire ship.

"Are you okay sir?" asked Hoshi from his station.

"Yes," said Lee with as much confidence as he could muster. "Carry on with what you were doing."

He was unsure of what to do. Generally his father stood around, telling others what they should be doing, but today the ship was doing nothing but orbiting a planet. He dumped his paperwork onto the schematics table and began looking at the star charts. The nebula he had seen on Kobol seemed so far away and they knew it would take many perfectly calculated FTL jumps to reach. They were also going out into the unknown wilderness so each jump would get harder and harder to plot.

Lee studied through the charts one by one until they began to make sense. He was starting on his third cup of coffee and wondering how many shots of ambrosia Fisk and Tigh had already downed when he felt the deep rumble echoing through the ship that sent his coffee slopping over the rim and onto the table.

"What the frak?" he said out loud. "Sitrep!"

"I'm not sure sir," said Hoshi and began flipping buttons and speaking into his headset.

"Not good enough lieutenant."

Another voice from across the room sounded out, "sir, we have a reports of an explosion and fire down on the hangar deck."

Lee's thoughts suddenly flashed to his wife and then his instinct told him to get down there stat and find her. He was about to start running when the voice of Hoshi brought him back to reality.

"What are your orders sir?" asked the lieutenant.

Lee paused for a moment, "get fire crews and medical personnel to the hangar deck now." He dashed over to the diagnostic panel, seeing that only one area was flashing up red.

"Do you want us to purge the deck?" asked Hoshi again, which would entail sealing off the deck and venting out all the oxygen, maybe killing everyone still inside.

"What? No, no, the fire looks contained." He stared at the picture of the ship with the one flashing red light for what seemed like forever, willing it to turn off. He nearly jumped out of his skin when the comm buzzed behind him. He picked it up quickly, "sitrep."

The sound of his wife's voice was like music to his ears, even if she did sound slightly hoarse. "The fire's been contained and is being put out now."

"What caused it?"

"Not sure yet, probably a faulty piece of equipment from the Bucket."

"Any injuries?"

Kara paused for a moment, "Yeah, a few minor casualties from what I can see."

"Are you…" Lee corrected himself, he couldn't be the concerned husband right now. "I'll be down on the deck in a minute." He hung up the phone and walked across the room, "Hoshi you have the comm, any concerns or any more explosions and you call me, got it?"

"Yes sir."

"I'm going to assess the damage."

He strode out calmly, but he could feel the clamminess in his hands which he kept clenching. He had only been in charge of the ship for a few hours and already part of it had blown up. As soon as he was clear of the CIC he began running.

_oooo_

The explosion had been deafening and everything after had seemed to happen in slow motion. One moment she had been ticking another box on her clipboard and next there was suddenly smoke everywhere and the sound of people yelling.

Kara had directed everyone off the deck, ordering a complete evacuation. Several people had looked injured, but could walk the short distance beyond the containment doors. She was about to seal the room when she saw her deckhand Anya, scrambling on the deck having lost her footing. Kara had promptly run back in and dragged her out, sealing the deck after her. The fire crews had appeared quickly, putting out the fire fast, the ventilation shafts taking care of the smoke.

She was sat on the floor with her head resting up against the wall when Lee came. He had clearly run all the way.

"It's not as bad as it sounded," she said.

"Are you okay?" he asked crouching down beside her.

"Just took in a bit of smoke, I'll be fine," she replied with a cough. "You didn't vent out the deck."

"It was contained."

Kara looked at him for a moment, "are you sure, or did you hold back?" She regretted her insinuation as soon as it left her lips. "I didn't mean it like that."

"It was contained and I wasn't prepared to vent the deck until there was proof it was spreading."

Kara coughed sharply making her lungs sting slightly. She pushed herself up from the floor and walked towards the hangar deck.

"You should get yourself checked out by doc Phillips," said Lee.

"I'm fine," said Kara dismissively as she surveyed the damage. Fortunately it didn't look too bad.

"Do I have to make that an order?"

Kara turned to her husband and with a cheeky grin saluted, "yes sir." She had missed him giving her orders, which she was used to responding to with mock insolence.

Walking up the corridors everything seemed normal as if nothing had happened. Lifestation was slightly busier with a number of nurses rushing around. Their casualties seemed to be light and no deaths had been reported. The most injured seemed to be her deckhand with a leg injury.

She waited for a few minutes before cursing under her breath and making her escape. She was starting to feel better anyway. Turning the corner she walked towards the nursery, hearing the cries of the children before she even entered.

"What's happened?" she asked one of the carers who was holding a crying Joseph.

"The explosion scared them that's all," she replied and then handed him over to Kara. He stopped crying as soon as he was in his mother's arms.

"Hey there," she cooed into his hair. "The bang was on the other side of the ship, it's okay."

"Most of them got upset," added the nurse. "It used to happen a lot before we found New Caprica."

Kara nodded, she hadn't appreciated how strange and scary the noises on a Battlestar could be to a small child. She sat in one of the small chairs and cradled her son lovingly. Lena seemed pretty unaffected and continued to play happily on the floor.

"I thought you'd ignore my order," said Lee and Kara turned to see him standing in the doorway.

"Checking up on me huh?"

"I learnt a long time ago that it was a waste of time to chase you up," he said with a grin. "I came to check on the kids."

"They're fine," replied Kara. "How much damage is there?"

"The Master-at-arms is looking into it, looks like a dropped ordinate went off. Fortunately the damage appears to be minimal and our casualties are light."

" Anya hurt her leg, I had to drag her out."

"I think she was closest to it," he paused for a moment. "I've got to get back, Fisk's heard of the incident and is on his way back."

"You're first time in command huh?"

Lee chuckled, "yeah. I'm really looking forward to telling Fisk that the ship blew up in my first two hours of command."

"It's not your fault Lee, at least it didn't go off when Fisk was down on the deck."

"I've got to get back to the CIC before he arrives." He leant down and gave their children a pat on the head.

Kara took a deep breath, speaking before he left. "If that fire hadn't been contained you would've had no choice but to give that order Lee, regardless of whether or not I was down there."

He looked down at the floor briefly, "but it was contained."

"This time. You just need to make sure you're prepared to make that order."

Lee walked over to her and placed a kiss to her brow. "I don't think I would ever be prepared for it Kara, but if it meant the safety of the ship and these two, then I'd make it."

Kara stood with Joseph in her arms and gave Lee a soft kiss to his lips. "Thanks for agreeing to kill me if necessary," she said with a grin which made Lee laugh. "Now go and tell Fisk you're sorry for blowing up his ship."

Lee grimaced slightly and reluctantly walked away leaving Kara with the kiddies. She handed Joseph to one of the carers and said goodbye, explaining to them that their mom had to work.

She walked back to the hangar deck, which was starting to look like normal again, apart from the sectioned off area where the explosion had occurred. It was always amazing to see how the ship continued to work as if nothing had happened only an hour before. On the way, Kara had dropped into the head to wash the smoke off her face, and she was ready to carry on, ignoring the slight burning sensation in her chest.

"You okay sir?" asked the Chief.

"Peachy," she replied and picked up her clip board. "Right, who's next to arrive?"

_oooo_

Adama surveyed the damage in the cordoned off area of the hangar deck, visibly frowning.

"It looks, and sounded, worse than it was," said Lee who was stood just behind him next to Kara.

"It was too close," replied Adama. "Remember the last time one of these ordinates exploded on the deck?"

Lee nodded glumly, he remembered it too well as the pilot's ready room had been virtually empty afterwards, only another few minutes later and he and Kara would probably have been killed too. Adama looked up at them and then around the hangar deck, giving everything a long appraisal. There was a definite sadness in his eyes. Slowly he walked across the deck, nodding to everyone he passed. Out of respect they all stopped what they were doing and saluted.

Today was the day that the Pegasus was leaving the fleet and he was saying goodbye to everyone. Kara and Lee followed him as he walked through the ship. It filled Lee with pride to see the admiration his father held throughout the ship, especially amongst the former Galactica crew. He would miss him and a sudden sadness struck through him.

He felt Kara's hand in his as they walked behind the old man who circled the corridors until he came to the CIC. As soon as he entered, Shaw shouted out "Admiral on deck." The room stood to attention.

"At ease," said Adama and walked over to Fisk. "Is your ship ready?"

"As ready as she'll ever be sir," replied the Commander.

Adama nodded, "then start preparing for your first two jumps."

"Yes sir," replied Fisk and nodded to Shaw who turned to start the preparations for the FTL jump.

Adama picked up the comm system and got ready to address the entire ship. Kara patted Lee's arm and then walked quietly out of the room, leaving him to stand and watch his father.

"This is the Admiral," he said down the comm, which echoed around the ship. "Set condition three throughout the ship. In twenty minutes you will be flying out into the unknown, be prepared for anything you could face out there. The rest of the fleet will be waiting and expecting you all back in two years." He paused for a moment. "Good luck."

Lee could see the emotion in his father's eyes as he replaced the comm and took a look around the CIC. Lee followed him out into the corridor, where everyone had now stopped what they were doing and were stood to attention to let him through.

All of the corridors were the same. When they neared the hangar deck area, they saw Kara standing there with Lena in her arms and Joseph gripping onto her leg. Lee could see the tears pooling in her eyes as Adama walked up to them slowly. She passed over Lena into her grandfather's arms.

Crouching down, Adama placed her on his knee and brought Joseph in closer. He then placed a hand a couple of inches above Joseph's head, "you'll probably be this big when I next see you."

"Paw?" asked Joseph as he sucked on a finger.

"And learning to answer your parents back," he said with a smile. "Take care of them for me." He brought them both in for a hug before passing them back to their mother.

Kara then handed Lena and Joseph to Meg and followed Lee and Adama down to the hangar deck where a raptor was ready to disembark. Kara and Lee stood next to the wing of the raptor to watch him leave.

"Two years," he said with a hand on Lee's shoulder.

"Dad I…"

"Two years," he repeated and then pulled his son into a tight hug. He then turned to Kara, holding a hand to her cheek before pulling her into a hug.

Taking a step up onto the wing of the raptor, he took a long look around the deck.

"Admiral of the fleet leaving the ship," said Lee loudly and saluted his father along with Kara. He felt a sharp pang in his stomach as he disappeared on board the raptor and the hatch door shut. They carried on watching as slowly it was towed away into the airlock.

Kara placed a hand to Lee's arm and said softly, "you'll see him again Lee, in two years." He smiled at her, aware that the deck was starting to get busy. "Now get your ass up to the CIC, there's only ten minutes to the first jump."

_oooo_

"FTL jump in fifteen seconds…fourteen…thirteen…" The ship was eerily quiet apart from the sound of Shaw's voice that sounded over the comm system.

"Twelve…eleven…ten…"

The tension amongst the crew showed in all their faces as the countdown got lower. In the CIC, Lee couldn't help but continue to stare up at the dradis monitor, his stomach turning in spirals.

"Nine…eight…seven…"

Down on the hangar deck, Kara sat on the steps to her viper, her helmet ready in the cockpit. She could feel the sweat mottling on her brow and her heart was beating fast as she listened to Shaw's voice.

"Six…five…four…"

Kara swallowed as she felt the familiar tug of the FTL drive starting to pull her inwards.

"Three…two…one…"

The decompression was quick as the ship finished it's jump. Kara's heart was now beating even faster and she could see from look on Kat's face, who was stood opposite her, that she was feeling the same. Kara glanced at the clock on the wall. It had been ten seconds already and there was just silence on the ship.

In the CIC, Lee kept staring up at the dradis. There was no-one but them, the Tylium ship and their escorting raptor on the edge of the nebula.

"Get ready for the second jump," ordered Fisk.

"Entering the co-ordinates now sir," said Shaw.

Lee gripped his hands onto the edge of the console below the dradis monitor. The minutes dragged on as he waited, watching as the blip representing the raptor jumped away back onto the other side of the nebula, leaving them all alone.

"All hands prepare for the second FTL jump," said Shaw at last and she started the countdown again. "fifteen…fourteen…thirteen…"

Down on the hangar deck, Kat fidgeted next to her viper. "Just frakking jump already," she muttered.

"Twelve…eleven…ten…"

Kara fiddled with the ring on the end of her dogtags, psyching herself and getting ready to run up the steps to her cockpit and start fighting.

"Nine…eight…seven…six…five…four…"

The pull of the FTL drive kicked in again.

"Three…two…one."

After the decompression the ship was silent, nothing stirring as they sat and waited. They were all alone now. Kara kept watching the clock, still fiddling with the ring on her dogtags.

The seconds ticked by, which then turned into minutes until finally Fisk addressed them over the comm. "Reduce alert status to condition four."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief as alone the small fleet of two ships started coasting through space, venturing out into the unknown.


	49. A Glimpse of the Future Part Eight

Chapter 48

Ford could feel his stomach flipping over and over as he pulled on his jumpsuit, zipping the front up firmly. He could sense that the others also felt the same way and the room was silent. He could almost feel Caroline's presence waiting for him outside and felt a pang in his stomach at the thought that he wouldn't see her for weeks.

Biggy suddenly slapped him on the shoulder, pulling him out of his private reverie and saying "cheer up." He was the calmest looking one out of them.

They both then turned as the door to the room opened and in walked Blondie and Rugby. The former was wearing the same kit as them but Rugby was wearing one of the spacesuits with a helmet under his arm.

"How comes he gets one of those?" asked Biggy jovially.

"Just in case," replied Ford. "The other one was damaged when we were experimenting with it."

"And the owner's tiny," added Blondie via the translation computer.

"So is Skulls," said Rugby tugging at the collar. He looked very uncomfortable and the fit was obviously tight.

"You ready?" asked Blondie with her arms folded over her chest.

The men all said yes in reply, but Biggy was the only one who was convincing. Blondie and Rugby on the other hand looked raring to go. Ford glanced over at Greg Langley. He had been the quietest one and had spent most of the preparation time just staring at the wall.

Ford took a deep breath and then neared Blondie. She had her own handheld translation device so he said to her quietly, "just remember not to betray our trust." The woman seemed a little insulted by the accusation and Ford almost wished he could take the comment back. "My back still hurts from where you shoved it through that window," he said with a smile.

This time the woman laughed, "don't worry, I'm not going to try anything. I'm not _that_ suicidal."

Ford glanced over at Rugby who chuckled, making him feel as if he had missed some sort of private joke. It had seemed like years that their guests had been held here, but the faint bruise on Blondie's cheek, reminded him that in fact it hadn't been long at all. Their individual personalities had ingrained themselves on his soul, but there was still so much to learn.

"Ready?" he said.

Blondie nodded and then addressed the room. "Remember, touch nothing on that ship, even if it beeps at you."

"_Especially _if it beeps at you," added Rugby.

"Exactly," continued Blondie. "You have no idea how to run the systems on the raptor, no matter how smart you think you are, so don't frakking try it."

She had successfully silenced the room again.

"Thanks for that," replied Ford and then stepped aside so Blondie and Rugby could walk out first. Straightening his shoulders, he followed out behind them, trying to hide the nervous wreck he held inside.

The ship loomed in the distance, surrounded by members of staff who had come to watch the off. He saw Caroline standing there watching him and everything inside of him wanted to walk over and take her into him arms. But he knew he would never be able to let her go again if he did. Instead he gazed longingly at her and then boarded the ship.

The sound of the hatch door closing seemed deafening in the small metal enclosure. Ford had walked straight up to the front of the ship where Blondie joined him and took the seat next to her. Rugby sat in the chair next to all the panels and the others took seats in fold down chairs near to the hatch door. He had never felt so claustrophobic before.

There was a hum as the power in the ship was spooled up and all of the panels came alight. Ford didn't fully listen as Blondie and Rugby started flipping buttons and seemed to be going through a pre-flight checklist.

"Right," she said after flipping one button. She stood and turned towards him, pulling the seat harness over his shoulders and attaching it at the front. Ford couldn't help the slight flash of desire spark through him as she leant in close, which was soon pushed out as she tugged forcefully on the belt, knocking the air out of his lungs.

"Was that really necessary?" he asked.

"Nope," she replied. "But then again, this is the first time I've had to strap someone else in myself."

Ford found himself tugging on the belt. Blondie then squeezed through the gap and went into the back of ship. Ford could only twist his head round slightly to see what was going on. Both she and Rugby were strapping the others into their seats.

"Are you okay?" asked Blondie and Ford could see she was talking to Langley, who looked decidedly pale.

"I'm just…" he replied weakly, "a little scared of flying."

"So you decided to volunteer for this mission?" said Blondie. Even through the translator machine, Ford could hear the exasperation in her voice.

"I thought I would be fine, I'm sorry."

"Do you want off?"

"No, please, no, I just might need something if I throw up."

Blondie sighed and walked over to Rugby, grabbing his helmet and turning it upside down, placing it in Langley's lap. "If you throw up, make sure it's in that."

Ford frowned, "I thought we needed…"

"Just don't tell anyone," replied Blondie and leant in towards Langley, pointing at her eyes to make him focus. "Hey, don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

"How many take-offs out of the atmosphere have you done?" he asked over the rim of the helmet.

"Honestly? In the past few years, not many. I'm a viper pilot, but I used to train people how to do this. Don't worry I'll make the take-off text book perfect." That seemed to bring some of the colour back into the man's face.

Blondie and Rugby continued to do their checks and then took their seats. Blondie pulled the seatbelt harness over her shoulders and attached it at the front.

The raptor rumbled to life and Ford felt his fingers digging into his seat. Glancing out of his side window he could see Caroline and Blue Eyes had moved back and were watching on looking forlorn. He closed his eyes briefly and then turned to Blondie. "Text book right?"

"Relax, we're already off the ground."

Ford spun his head to glance out of the window, seeing that they were already a few metres off the ground. Blondie made it look effortless as she turned the ship as they continued to rise and then pushed forward on the throttle. The g-forces felt like the start of a fast rollercoaster in his stomach and then the clouds were streaking past them. As they hurtled into the atmosphere, Ford found himself imagining what the first astronauts felt like as their rockets blasted off into the unknown.

Quickly the ride got bumpy and he found himself looking up in awe as they left the blue skies behind and the blackness of space surrounded them. It was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. He flicked his eyes towards Blondie who seemed unaffected, concentrating on her controls.

"Putting her into a standard orbit," she shouted out to Rugby. "You see anything on dradis yet?"

"Not yet," replied Rugby who was also flipping switches.

Ford glanced out of his window, watching the world go by. It looked so peaceful up here with England looking so tiny from this far away.

"Is this what you were expecting?" asked Blondie.

"I don't feel any weightlessness."

"What did you expect? To float about the ship? Frak, your planet really is behind."

Ford ignored her jibe, choosing to stare out of the windows as the Earth went by below. "They're not here are they?" he said at last after about an hour.

"It's a big frakking sky out there."

"But a big ship would be hard to miss," he observed.

"The Pegasus won't be here, they'd send a raptor to watch and wait."

Ford looked at her briefly and then turned back to the windows. "Nice of you to share that information _before_ we took off."

"I thought it was obvious."

"Have we at least communicated with the base?"

"Yes, Helo did that whilst you were staring out the window."

Ford glanced back at her, seeing that she was focused on the path ahead. He had never met someone that could be so wonderfully abrasive before, and he found himself looking forward to seeing what she was like amongst her other crewmen, especially those whom she answered to.

"We've got something," said Rugby from the back of the ship.

Blondie spun her head round towards him, "friendly?"

"Hang on…I'm getting a Colonial transponder signal."

Blondie turned to Ford with a quick grin, "told you." She then slipped headphones, with a comm device attached, onto her head. As he looked at her, he could see out of her window, a shadow appearing.

"Oh my god," he said and pointed to what looked like a ship which was identical to theirs.

Blondie turned quickly to look out of the window and then they heard a crackling over their comm system. It was a man's voice.

"This is raptor 295, please identify yourself."

Ford felt slightly panicked and his stomach twanged with nerves, which was only slightly eased by the smile that grew on Blondie's face.

"I never thought I would be happy to hear _your_ voice Stinger," she said, continuing to glance out of the window at the ship which was getting closer and closer.

The man's voice, who Ford guessed belonged to this "Stinger" person, spoke again. "Starbuck? Is that really you? You look as if you're ship is drifting, is your axial position altered?"

Blondie laughed, "that would be a negative Stinger, we are _not_ under duress. We do have some interesting passengers here though."

The ship was now cruising parallel to theirs and Ford could see the occupant in the front, but he couldn't really make out his features due to the helmet he was wearing.

"What the frak are you wearing sir?" asked the man looking in at them.

"Long story Stinger. Looking forward to sharing it back on the Beast though and not out here," she paused and then said in a wobbly voice. "Stinger, my kids…"

"Causing havoc sir, but they're fine."

Ford saw Blondie's shoulders visibly relax. He had no idea whether the translator was incorrect or not, but it sounded as if she had referred to their ship as the beast giving him an uneasy feeling, but before he could voice his concern the man spoke again.

"I'm sending over the jump co-ordinates to you now."

"I'm getting them through," added Rugby.

"What do you want me to tell Fisk?" asked the male.

"That we're friendlies and not to blow us out of the sky," replied Blondie, sounding only half serious.

"Who else is with you?"

"Oh, just me, Helo and some people from Earth."

Ford found himself frowning slightly, not quite sure if the pilot banter he was hearing was normal, or if they would land on their ship and have a gun thrust in their faces.

"And the others?" asked the male.

"Back on Earth. Listen, tell Fisk that we've all come unarmed, but with supplies, including toothpaste."

"Okay Starbuck, spooling up our FTL now."

The other ship seemed to move away and with a sudden flash it was gone.

"Holy shit," exclaimed Ford, "did they just jump away?"

"Yep, and we're going to follow," replied Blondie. "You ready Helo?"

"Ready on your mark," responded Rugby from the rear.

"Get ready everyone, this can feel a little strange the first time. Langley, you still got that helmet?" She smiled widely to herself with a shake of her head when there was a muffled response from the back.

_A little strange_ was an understatement. Ford could feel his stomach being turned inside out, his body compressing inwardly and then with a sudden flash he decompressed again, his head feeling as if it was floating. Stretching out beyond them he could see a planet looming ahead. It was breathtakingly beautiful.

"Everyone okay?" asked Blondie out loud.

"Oh my god, is that…that's,,," said Ford staring out at the beautiful planet. "This is…wow."

"Mmmm," replied Blondie. "Believe me when I say, finding uninhabitable planets gets really boring after a while."

"I've seen pictures of this planet since I was a kid. I mean, its Saturn, I never imagined I would get to see it this close."

Blondie seemed to glance at him quickly with curiosity but then corrected herself and looked back at her controls. "You haven't seen anything yet."

Slowly their ship turned away from the planet and looming even closer to them he saw a large ship. The pictures he had seen of her did not do justice its true size. It was massive and looked almost menacing with its long body with two wing-like extensions on the side. Up ahead he could see the other smaller ship heading towards the beast.

"We are _so_ behind on Earth," said Ford leaning forward in his seat, his eyes focused on the ship as they neared her.

"But at least you still have Earth," said Blondie. "Which is more than what we've got."

Ford felt a sudden pang of guilt and sadness at her words. In his excitement about the mission he had forgotten that the ship in front of them was probably what their guests would consider to be their home.

There was a crackle over the comm system and another male voice sounded over. "Starbuck, this is Pegasus Actual do you copy?"

"Copy that Pegasus, this is Starbuck."

"Are you on a private comm?" the male asked, his voice holding a tone of authority and Ford guessed he was Blondie's superior.

"Erm, no sir," she replied and glanced at Ford briefly. "Switching now."

Ford couldn't fully hear the next conversation between them, which mainly consisted of Blondie listening. At one point he could see her rolling her eyes. At other points she spoke quietly into the comm, which the translator couldn't pick up.

"Copy that sir," she said loudly and then straightened in her seat.

"What's the verdict?" asked Rugby from the back.

"Well, we're allowed to land," she replied, "but he didn't sound too happy."

"He never does."

"Everything okay?" asked Ford.

"The Commander is just never happy unless he's handing me my ass on a plate," replied Blondie.

"Sounds like me and him will have something in common then," he replied with a smile, which made Blondie laugh.

She thrust the ship forwards, heading for the ship. As they neared, Ford could see the true enormity of the ship. It must carry hundreds of people yet it had no windows and certainly looked like a ship ready for battle. Blondie steered the ship into the wing like structure, before slowing and lowering until Ford could feel the clunk as they touched down.

Blondie grinned at him and then unharnessed her seatbelt, slipping into the back. "Everyone okay?" she asked. Ford struggled with his belt for a few minutes before finally setting himself free.

In the back he could see that Langley looked ashen, but he had managed to hold his stomach. Blondie took away the helmet and passed it back to Rugby.

"It'll take a few minutes to tow us to the deck," she said.

The others all unfastened their belts and Swanson went to take a look out of the front. His face looked as eager as ever.

"This is fantastic," he said.

There was a series of clunks and then Ford realised that the ship was being lowered down. A series of doors then opened, which he guessed was the airlock. A number of people in bright orange uniforms entered and duck down in front of them. The ship then shuddered suddenly and moved slowly forwards. The room they were towed into looked massive with dozens of people milling about, mostly wearing the same orange jumpsuits, but others looked to be wearing the same spacesuits as Rugby. The ship was being towed through the middle of a line of ships that Ford recognised from the photograph of Blondie and Blue Eyes. They all looked battle worn with scorch marks all over.

And then they stopped.

Various eyes were looking right at him from the outside, gathering around the ship. He was starting to appreciate how their guests must have felt being watched every day in wonderment. Then he noticed that surrounding the ship, all dressed in black, were a number of people with guns.

The hatch door of the ship opened and Blondie stepped out first onto the wing, signalling for them to stay on the ship. Ford couldn't see what was happening outside as he had moved to the back. A few moments later and Blondie returned, motioning them out this time.

Ford looked around the large room as he stepped out, trying to take in everything that was around him. The room was full of people who looked to be wearing a variety of uniforms. From up above, walking along a gangway, were a few people wearing a smarter blue uniform. One of them was much larger than the others and seemed to be flanked by some guards. He then walked quickly down some steps to the deck and Blondie walked up to him saluting sharply.

Ford stepped down from the wing and tentatively walked ahead of his comrades who seemed to have shied away and bunched next to their ship. The imposing man in blue, who appeared to be Blondie's superior, walked past her and up to him. Ford wasn't quite sure what to, so he reverted back to his training and saluted. The man appeared taken aback slightly.

"Frak, they even salute like us," he mumbled, obviously not expecting Ford to understand, but the translator picked it up.

"And they can understand you too sir," said Blondie with a smirk.

"Right," said the man, seemingly unsure of what to say. "I'm Commander Fisk and I welcome you to the Colonial Fleet." Ford saw Blondie roll her eyes and he tried not to laugh. "You will be our guests here, but until I finish debriefing my two officers you will be confined to some quarters."

Ford frowned slightly, "okay, how long will that be for?"

The Commander looked puzzled, then Blondie stepped forwards so he could hear her translator. Ford repeated his question.

"Hopefully not long, but let's not forget that you've held six of my people for months and we have no idea what was done to them, or is still being done to them."

"I assure you that your people are fine and being taken care of," replied Ford cordially.

"We'll see, follow me."

The Commander turned and walked away, followed closely by Blondie. Biggy walked up beside him and together they followed.

"How are you holding up?" asked Biggy quietly.

"This whole thing, I never imagined…" whispered Ford in response.

"You had the best view getting here. All I could see was Langley deciding whether or not he was gonna puke."

"We'll all get our chance."

"I want to get out in one of them," he said pointing to the fighter ships.

"Well at this rate we won't be going anywhere fast."

"At least they're not holing us up in their equivalent of the brig."

"Yet, I think that might depend upon what those two tell them," said Ford just as they stepped through a doorway that took them into a corridor, which had numerous metal crates stacked on both sides.

"But they won't have anything bad to say would they?" asked Biggy. "I mean, I heard they were locked in a room for a while and I guess they were questioned, but under the circumstances…"

Ford winced slightly, "there was one incident."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, Blondie tried to escape."

Biggy chuckled, "come on, what harm could one woman do?" Ford looked at him, his eyebrow slightly raised. "Seriously? Wow, what happened?"

"She pushed me through a glass partition and then I thumped her in the face."

"That's where she got the mark," said Biggy motioning to his face.

"I'm not proud of it."

"Never suggested you were."

The group ahead seemed to slow down slightly letting them catch up. The Commander seemed to have stopped to speak to a woman who was in a spacesuit with short blonde hair. Ford moved next to Blondie and she nodded at him.

The corridors seemed like a maze, with long stretches and then many that branched off in no particular order. He had once been on board a Royal Navy Aircraft carrier for a few weeks, which had been very similar. This ship, however, was much bigger and the corridors were much wider and less claustrophobic. On the aircraft carrier, though, there had been the option to go up to the deck and see sunshine. This beast was a lot more like an enormous submarine.

Up ahead he saw a few people rounding the corner, one of whom had two children holding her hands. Ford heard the small gasp come from Blondie and then she darted forwards. The children let go of their minder's hands and scuttled towards her shouting "momma." Within seconds Blondie was down on her knees and scooping them into her arms, hugging and placing kisses to their head. It was if he was seeing a radically different woman, far removed from the brash person who had slammed someone's head into a table.

"Where momma go?" squeaked the little girl, her ringlet hair in pigtails. She looked as if she was starting to cry.

"I'm sorry," said Blondie placing another kiss to her head. "Momma had to go away for a while, but I'm back now. I've missed you so much."

The little girl was now crying and Ford felt very subconscious that he was intruding on this personal moment.

Blondie pulled the girl into a hug. "I'm so sorry sweetheart," she said, her voice cracking.

"Where dada?" asked the little boy with a sniff and tugged at Blondie's jumpsuit.

"Dadda's still away, but he wanted me to give you both a big hug for him."

"Want dada," squealed the girl.

"You'll see him soon, I promise."

Ford turned his head away slightly, feeling ashamed that he had been partly responsible for diving up a family.

"I bet seeing that makes you feel like the biggest arsehole," commented by Biggy quietly, which Ford chose not to respond to. The man was right though, he did feel like the biggest arsehole ever.

"Want dada," squealed the girl again and stomped her feet. The little boy just stood there beginning to cry.

Blondie got to her feet, scooping up the girl into her arms in an apparent attempt at calming her down, which seemed to fail as she continued to squirm about. The boy jumped up at his mother, tugging at her clothing, sobbing "up, up, momma."

From behind Rugby brushed past, with a little girl holding shyly onto his hand, who Ford guessed was his daughter. She looked like her mother and completely ordinary despite her unusual lineage. Ford didn't think he would ever be able to get his head round the logistics of it all. Rugby scooped up the boy onto his hip, seeming to calm him down, which made Ford feel like an even bigger ass for not thinking of that first. Blondie seemed to give her comrade a "thank you" gaze before turning to her Commander.

"Permission to take these two back to my quarters before reporting for my debriefing sir," she asked as the girl tugged at her hair.

"Permission granted," he said with a frown, seemingly uncomfortable with the children. "You have until 0900 hours tomorrow morning."

"Thank you sir," she replied, struggling to hold onto her daughter who was wriggling about and getting agitated. She turned quickly and walked briskly down the corridor with Rugby following along.

The Commander turned to the rest of them with a small smile, "having children on board was not my idea."

Ford resisted stepping back from the man. He was all too acutely aware that they were now alone with strangers on a foreign ship with no chance of escape and their only links had disappeared down the corridor. He had come to know their guests quite well, but this man he couldn't read at all. The others must have been feeling the same, because Ford felt their presence close to him.

"This way," said the Commander and motioned them down the corridor. They hesitated. "Please."

They were led down a series of corridors until they reached a door which had two people standing outside, both holding guns. The door opened automatically and they were motioned inside. It was surprisingly spacious and four put-up beds had been laid out.

"This is just a temporary measure," said the Commander. "I have to debrief my two officers and then we can discuss how to go forward. You will be confined here until tomorrow, but I will arrange to have an armed escort should you wish to have a walk about the corridors. I'll have some food brought to you shortly."

The man didn't wait for a response, merely turned and walked away and closed the door leaving them locked inside. The room was eerily silent, with the only sound coming from the hum of the ship.

"Can I throw up now?" said Langley weakly after a few minutes.

Ford turned to the man who looked ashen and appeared to be sweating. "Knock yourself out."

Langley dashed through an adjoining door, followed a moment later by the sound of him retching making Ford turn up his nose.

"This is to be expected," said Swanson sitting himself down on one of the bunks.

"The scientist is right," added Biggy. "Their military protocol seems similar to ours. In these situations we'd want to question our men first before deciding what action to take. They'd be asking them exactly what we know about them." Ford nodded his head, thinking the same. When he had been rescued from captivity he had been questioned for four days about what had happened. "Listen," continued Biggy. "What _did _they tell us?"

"You mean you don't know?" asked Ford with a frown.

He shrugged his shoulders, "someone pulled me off an aircraft carrier in the middle of the Mediterranean, only telling me that I was needed for a highly classified mission with the promise I would get to fly something really cool. It was only when I reached the base that they told me about your alien friends, who, may I add, look very human. I was expecting something green."

"Shit," muttered Ford a little too loudly. He gestured his arm towards Langley who was walking in from the bathroom. "None of you thought to tell him what he was getting himself into huh?"

Langley looked a little taken aback. "But that's what I was told too. The mission was to establish communications with an alien civilisation."

"That's it?" asked Ford incredulously.

"Well, yes, isn't it?"

Ford looked over at Swanson and could tell the man was thinking along the same lines as him. He had not been privy to the interviews with Blondie and Blue Eyes but he had been fully debriefed and then present at the larger hearing.

"So are you going to tell us or just leave us guessing," said Biggy folding his arms in front of his chest. "What have I let myself in for?"

"Won't these people be listening to what we say?" asked Swanson pointing upwards.

"How?" replied Ford. "We have the translators, and the other two are with Blondie and Rugby who seem occupied for the time being. Besides, they know everything anyway."

"So what _is _everything," said Biggy impatiently.

"They _are_ human, pretty much, apart from a few evolutional differences."

"What? How is that possible, we've never gone out into deep space?"

"They said they were searching for us, that Earth is said to be their thirteen Colony. Some of their ancestors chose to go out on their own and create a new civilisation. Blondie was shocked and looked upset when I told her that we had never heard of the Twelve Colonies."

"Twelve Colonies?" asked Langley.

"Twelve planets."

"Wow," said Biggy. "There's a huge flourishing civilisation of humans out there? They could teach us so much, become a new home for us too, the possibilities are endless." Ford nearly grimaced at his words, glancing over at Swanson who looked down sadly. "What are you missing out?" continued Biggy.

Ford took a seat on one of the beds that creaked from his weight. "Their entire civilisation was wiped out, billions of them dead. This ship was one of a small number to get away with only about fifty thousand survivors."

The air escaped from Biggy's mouth. "How?"

"They created machines which rebelled against them, found a way to infiltrate their defences and launched their own nukes against them."

"I think I need to be sick again," said Langley and disappeared into the bathroom.

"It gets worse," said Ford with a dark smile. "These machines also know about Earth and they're looking for us too."

"I think I'm going to join Langley in the head," said Biggy after a minute of taking in Fords words and then walked away.

Ford sighed and laid down on the bed with his arms behind his head. The day wasn't going quite as he had planned it and his body felt tired.

"That could have gone better," commented Swanson as he sat down on the bed adjacent to his.

"What was I supposed to do, sugar coat it?"

"I've watched those interviews, you can see the emotion in those people's eyes as they told us about their extinction, we can understand it. None of that was conveyed in what you told those two. They're probably laying all the blame on them for the threat that now looms over us."

"Regardless of what those two think, the rest of the world is going to blame these people if those robots come, but at least we can have their allegiance to help fight them off."

"They've been running for years because they lost. What makes you think they could win now?"

Ford shrugged, "our resources and man power combined with their technology?"

Biggy emerged from the bathroom, "as long as I get to fly one of those fighter ships I'm happy with any alliance." Ford sat up slightly to turn to him. "Hell, I'm amazed that we haven't destroyed ourselves yet, so let me train in one of those vipers and I'll help blow those robot things out of the sky if they come."

Ford relaxed back down onto the bed with a smile and closed his eyes, at least he had Biggy back on board. He felt absolutely exhausted even though it was only early afternoon. He had plenty of time for a quick nap.

Closing his eyes he thought of Caroline, wondering if she was looking up at the skies wondering what he was doing. One day he would bring her on board this ship. He imagined them walking together along the shores of an ocean far away on another world, the water lapping at their feet.

All he had to do was get through the next 28 days.


	50. Waiting for the Storm

**Sorry for the delay, a holiday, birthday and exams got in the way and kept me busy, lame excuse I know.**

Chapter 49

The warmth of the bed sheets were comforting and cosy as Lee fell out of his deep sleep. He had been dreaming of a swirling storm, much like the ones that used to batter Caprica occasionally. When he was a child he had once sat out in the living room and gazed out through the large windows as the debris flew past and watched as the eye of the storm had destroyed the house behind. His dream had been like that too, looking up into the eye of the storm. He had just shouted out "no" in anguish before his mind had woken him up. The hammering of his heart was only eased by the warmth of the bed and the body that was snuggled against his side.

Opening his eyes he saw the now long blonde hair of his wife strewn across his chest. It was always the most beautiful sight to wake up to and softly he placed a kiss to the top of her head. She stirred and raised her head.

"You okay?" she asked slightly groggily.

"Yeah, just a bad dream, go back to sleep," he replied softly.

But Kara raised herself up onto her elbows, looking at him intently. "I was only half asleep anyway, kept dreaming about that frakking baseship."

"Again?"

It was the third time that week that she had dreamt about it. The nightmares about their captivity had subsided significantly after months of orbiting New Caprica, but since the Pegasus had jumped away from the fleet they had increased again. Doc Philips had put it down to the stress of waiting for the unknown.

"It wasn't so bad this time," said Kara with a yawn and rested her head back down onto his chest. "You?"

"I think I was dreaming about something I saw when I was eight. Do you remember that massive storm which crippled half of Caprica?"

Kara looked up at him slightly confused, "not really, I can't even remember where I was living when I was eight."

Lee turned his head and looked towards the clock. It was 0500 hours and they only had one more hour in bed until they had to get up for their shift. "Never mind, it was probably nothing."

"It's just a dream Lee, the other week I dreamt my viper turned into my old hummer."

Lee chuckled, "bet that was difficult to fly."

"Nah, not with me behind the controls, flew like a dream, even had the gun I used to keep under the seat."

She grinned up at him and Lee felt his heart melting all over again. He stroked back her hair and then pulled up towards him for a deep kiss, which she returned in kind. Slowly he rolled her off his chest and onto her back, positioning himself between her legs. He leant in and kissed her softly, their already naked bodies flush together. Slowly he positioned himself and then entered her making her moan slightly into his mouth.

Gently and sensually he moved within her, whilst continuing his dance with her tongue. The sensation was enough to make even the most terrifying of nightmares disappear, all pain forgotten as he made love to his wife. The sound of her moaning with pleasure beneath him made it near impossible to hold his resolve, speeding up gradually as he could feel his peak rising.

"That's it," she moaned below, tossing back her head and arching her back in ecstasy. "Yes."

He couldn't hold it any longer, burying his head into her neck his pace quickened and quickened until finally he tipped over the edge and released inside of her. Then they just lay there together beneath the bed sheets, satiated in each other's arms.

"Do we have to get up?" asked Kara with a pout and looking at the clock, which was nearing 0600 hours.

"You don't want the XO to kick your ass do you?"

Kara grinned mischievously, "mmmn, sounds good."

Suddenly she rolled them on the bed so Lee was below her and she was straddling his chest. Lee reached up his arms, stroking his hands up the sides of her waist. To stay in bed for another few hours was deliciously tempting and he nearly relented, but sense prevailed. Sitting up quickly, Kara slid back into his lap with a grin. He placed a firm kiss to her lips.

"Come on, do you want the shower first?" he said.

"Nah, you can go. I'll get the kiddies, they're probably up already."

Lee got up from the bed, strode across the room and into their small bathroom and turned on the shower. They were on strict rations, especially as they had an exhaustible supply now. They had been out in unknown space for five weeks now and the mission was going smoothly, a little too smoothly, which had succeeded only in making everyone on edge. They had seen nothing of the cylons. Every time they jumped, the ship had been on full alert status, but nothing had materialised. Fortunately no-one seemed to be taking their reprieve for granted and everyone expected it was only a matter of time before they saw the cylons.

Lee wrapped his towel around his waist as he brushed his teeth, looking up at the steamed mirror. It reminded him of the storm. Pulling his eyes away he concentrated on brushing his teeth, only daring to look back as he shaved his face. It wasn't even that scary a dream and he wasn't sure why it had disturbed him so much. Splashing his face with water, he tried to drown away the images, then he heard the voice screaming out again and he pushed back violently from the sink.

"Get a frakking grip Lee," he said to himself.

The sound of his wife's laughter coming from the main room was enough to pull his concentration back to reality. With a deep breath he left the head seeing his wife crouching down in front of children who were in their highchairs.

She was making noises at them, "Mo…mo…mo."

Lee grinned, all thoughts of the dream forgotten. For the past few weeks the kids had been getting closer to formulating proper words and Kara seemed determined that they say "momma" first. It wasn't going to plan.

"Da?" said Lena with a finger in her mouth.

"Frak," muttered Kara quietly.

"Be careful or that'll be their first word," said Lee and walked over to them, leaning in towards Lena. "Dada?"

Lena scrunched up her face.

"Don't confuse her Lee, she wants to say mom, don't you Little Lee." The girl just looked up at them in wonderment.

Kara stood up went into the bathroom leaving Lee with the kids. He was amazed that they had managed to fall into a half organised routine every morning like a proper little family. After they were washed and dressed, one of them would go and get breakfast from the mess hall.

They both knew, however, that the cylons were bound to turn up one day and disrupt everything.

_oooo_

It was 0800 hours when Kara reported to Fisk's quarters for the morning meeting. At least he had coffee ready, which took the boredom of it away.

"We've got four days until our next planned jump," he said taking a long slurp of his coffee. He looked tired as if he hadn't slept in ages and littered around the room were scattered numerous star charts. It certainly looked different from Cain's reign.

"I've got tight CAPs planned until we leave, two hours each," replied Kara, lavishing the strength of the coffee.

"So short?"

"We're very open to attack here so I considered shorter CAPs would keep the pilots sharper."

Fisk nodded, "do we have enough resources for that?"

"Pilots we have plenty of, most of them are climbing the walls most days and Laird can turn around the vipers quickly."

"Good," relied Fisk. "Keep on it."

"I was also considering some training exercises, considering we have time."

"I'll leave that to you to organise," the Commander replied.

Kara nodded, the large man looked worn out. "You okay sir?"

"Fine Major, how are your pilots holding up?"

Kara took a gulp of coffee, "everyone looks as if they're not sleeping. They're all on edge. I believe most of them would prefer the cylons to turn up just to get the first encounter over with, especially the new nuggets."

Fisk nodded his head in understanding, "perhaps they've given up."

"The cylons? I doubt it, they're just busy searching for Earth like us," said Kara with a shrug of her shoulders. "We're bound to bump into them one day."

"Just keep your pilots frosty," said Fisk gruffly. "Dismissed."

Kara sighed as she left the Commander's quarters. Making sure the pilots stayed frosty was easier said than done. She wasn't meant to be their moral officer. She loosened the zip slightly on her flightsuit to stop it chafing at her neck and walked into the Ready room. Everyone stood to attention as she walked in and stood at the front lectern.

"At ease," she said with a yawn. Looking at her watch she addressed them again, "briefing starting at 0900 hours."

The room was packed full of pilots, many of whom had resorted to sitting on the floor at the front. Kara walked over to the side and poured herself another cup of coffee and return to the lectern. Everyone was looking at her intently. She took a sip of the bitter tasting coffee.

"Right…" she began.

And then the claxons blared around the room. Everyone jumped in their seats, but didn't rise straight up, the shock evident on their faces.

The sound of Shaw echoed over the comm system a second later, "set condition one around the ship."

"What do you want, a frakking written invitation?" shouted out Kara as she left her coffee and made quickly towards the exit. "Move it people."

Everyone then decided to move, jumping up from their seats. The claxons still blared as she ran down the corridor and grabbed her helmet from the quarters and sped down towards the deck. She could sense others were following. The adrenalin was pumping through her veins. It had been far too long since she'd had the pleasure of blowing a toaster out of the sky.

She sprinted along the gangway and down the steps. "Where's my frakking bird Chief?" she yelled, seeing that he seemed to just be standing to one side doing nothing. She was vaguely aware of Kat also yelling to them from just behind.

Something wasn't right.

"Chief, what the frak? We need our birds, we've got toasters flying up our ass!"

The man looked guilty and then Kara realised why. Out from the side stepped Fisk who looked as if he was holding a stopwatch. Behind him was Lee with a frown on his face. Kara lowered her helmet to the deck and then folded her arms in front of her chest. There were a number of pilots around her and still more running down from above, late to the party.

"What the frak is going on?" said Kara, ready for a fight.

"Remember who you're speaking to Starbuck," said Fisk.

"Sorry _sir_, what the frak is going on _sir_?" she repeated. From behind Fisk she could see Lee motioning for her stop, knowing that her blood was boiling.

Another few pilots joined them from above, including Hotdog and Duck.

"You're late," shouted out Fisk to them and they hurried up looking confused. The claxons then stopped and Shaw told the ship to stand down from alert. "What if this was a real emergency? We'd be getting our ass frakked while you two take nearly ten minutes to get ready, not good enough. You all started in the same place, so how can half of you make it in good time and the rest of you can't?"

Kara glanced behind her at the pilots who were looking very sheepish. The Commander had a point though, it wasn't good enough. In the time it had taken to get them down to the deck they should have already been in the launch tubes. She was pissed off and embarrassed.

Fisk continued, "You're comrades on CAP would've been alone out there waiting for you." He then turned to the rest, "Starbuck and Kat, excellent times, and half of you got down here in reasonable time. The rest will need to be put through some training exercises…"

The claxons sounded again breaking him off and echoing around the hangar deck.

Fisk looked up confused for a second and then Shaw's voice sounded over the comm. "Action stations, actions stations, set condition one throughout the ship, this is _not_ a drill."

Everyone moved at once, the pilots surging forwards to their birds, the deckhands moving to their positions and Lee running towards the ladder up to the gangway with Fisk close behind.

"Laird get my bird in that launch tube now!" shouted out Kara as she ran up the steps of her viper and into the cockpit. She was already performing her start up when the deckhands swarmed around her, beginning the tow her to the launch tubes. Next to her, Kat was doing the same, her viper seconds behind.

"At least the toasters won't be expecting us to be this ready," she shouted out.

She was right, the cylons probably wouldn't have been expecting such a large barrage of vipers to launch together and so quickly. "Good hunting everyone," said Kara as she threw on her helmet and pushed her canopy closed.

Down the length of the hangar deck she could see vipers being towed forwards to their launch tubes, another line already forming behind them. The adrenalin was pumping through her body even faster now and her blood was boiling. She was more than ready to take on these frakkers. Focusing her mind, she honed her senses, getting ready to go in for the kill.

She sprung her viper to life as soon as she was in the launch tube, signalling that she was ready to go. The g-forces of the launch made her determination pump faster and then she was out into space, seeing the baseship and its raiders in the distance whilst other vipers swarmed around her.

"Alright everybody," she said into her comm. "Standard formations, let's show these toasters a frakking bad time."

The vipers all converged into a standard pattern and she had Duck flying her wing. Over the comm Kara could hear everyone psyching themselves up for the battle. The distance between them and the enemy was closing fast.

"Sure you're ready for this Starbuck?" joked Kat over the comm. "Hasn't it been nearly two years since you've tried to blow a toaster out of the sky?"

"Still manage to blow your ass out of the sky every training exercise," replied Kara with a grin. "It's been a long time for all of us, so let's remind these toasters who owns the top gun trophy."

She heard Duck laughing over the comm, "perhaps they'll retreat when they realise they've got Starbuck after them again."

"Perhaps I should paint it in big letters down the side of my viper." They then went suddenly silent as the raiders closed into range. "Good hunting," was the last thing Kara said before they swarmed on the enemy.

_oooo_

Lee was the first to reach the CIC from the hangar deck, having sprinted flat out all the way. He had stormed in, shouting out for an immediate sitrep.

"One baseship sir," replied Shaw from below the dradis monitor. "She's launched raiders, they'll be on us in eight minutes."

"Frak," replied Lee. "Spool up the FTL drive."

"Already done sir, the tylium ship is doing the same."

"Good, make sure we have the tylium ship covered."

"She's hiding behind us sir," said Shaw as she dashed across to her post.

Fisk then came running into the CIC, looking worn out from the short run. He shouted out orders just as the vipers were launching and getting into formation. They watched together as the blips neared each other on the dradis monitor, listening to the battle ready banter coming from the pilots. Lee longed to be out there with them, to feel the adrenalin rush through his body, but instead he was stuck in the CIC, watching and listening, his fingers gripping the side of one of the consols.

He heard his wife say, "good hunting," and then the battle began.

There was frequent chatter over the comm, followed a few seconds later by Kat shouting out "splash one, frak yeah!"

A few moments later and he heard Kara's well known thrilling whoop, "two more little toasters down."

"Frak Starbuck," shouted out Duck. "How the frak did you do that?"

She didn't respond to him though, shouting out "aww come on it's like these frakker aren't even trying, third one sent back to the toaster factory."

"Do you think they're past their warranty?" asked Duck with a laugh.

There were more calls of downed raiders, all blending into one, but Lee's ears were attuned to distinguishing his wife's voice and any sounds of distress.

"Frak, there's so many of them," shouted out one pilot.

"Keep it together guys," said Kara. "Start drawing them back to the beast."

More toaster blips seemed to be appearing to replace their fallen comrades. Lee heard Fisk shout out, asking when they would be ready for a jump. Shaw had responded with "about ten minutes, the tylium ship thinks it has the problem sorted."

But Lee's attention was brought back to the dradis monitor as he heard Duck's voice over the comm.

"Starbuck, watch your six, you have two on your tail, engaging."

Lee felt he was unable to breathe as he heard his wife cursing, followed by a loud battle cry. He imagined her performing a high-g manoeuvre, flipping her viper over to take on her pursuers. He smiled as he heard her gleeful whoop, knowing she had once again pulled off the impossible.

His heart sunk when he heard her curse loudly.

"Starbuck do you copy?" he heard Duck say. "krypter krypter, Starbuck's spinning out of control."

"I'm okay!" he heard her finally shout out.

Lee could feel his head lifting up off his shoulders, hearing his heart beat hammering through his ears. It was an intense fight out there, but from what he could tell, they hadn't lost a single viper yet.

"The tylium ship has spooled up its FTL drive," said Shaw. "She's away."

"Good," replied Fisk. "Bring our pilots in and prepare to jump."

Shaw spoke into her comm system, informing the pilots to turn back and head for home. It took a few moments before they saw the blips on the dradis moving away from the action. The Pegasus launched its firing solution, protecting them. Finally Lee heard his wife's voice.

"Pegasus, Starbuck, heading in now, there's no-one but toasters behind me."

Lee saw the smile form on Fisk's face. It was a rare sight to see the large man visibly relax. He then felt the familiar pull of the FTL drive kicking in and then releasing. Looking up at the dradis monitor there was no longer any blips closing in.

Finally, after five weeks, he breathed a sigh of relief.

_oooo_

Her viper had hit down on the deck with a satisfying thud behind the others. The adrenalin was still pumping around her body, but she was feeling at ease. The tension of when they were going to meet the cylons had been wearing heavily on everyone's shoulders and now it was released.

Kara pushed back the cockpit canopy as soon as she was towed out onto the deck. She was a little confused as a number of people had turned their attention to her viper.

"You look like you had fun out there," said Showboat with a grin, her helmet under her arm.

Kara stood up and over onto the steps, seeing immediately what Showboat was talking about. All up the sides of her viper were blood splatters from one of the raiders she had destroyed. There had been two close on her tail and she had flipped her viper over tightly, blowing them both apart as they zoomed past. The debris of one had clipped the side of her viper hard sending her spinning away and through the blood splatter she could see the dark black scorch marks and a large hole.

Laird was stood to the side, his hands on his hips, looking displeased as he surveyed the damage. "What the frak did you do to my ship Major?"

The damage was enough to make even Kara frown. Everyone else's ships looked relatively unscathed apart from the normal battle marks. "It's like they knew I was back in the skies," she said with a grin, trying to joke off the near miss.

"I'll say," said Duck. "It's like they were gunning for you out there."

"That's impossible Duck, why would they suddenly do that?"

"You single-handedly destroyed one of their baseships, something like that, they're bound to remember. You also went out there and blasted two away with one shot."

Kara shook her head, "toasters don't hold grudges Duck." She looked at the damage again, remembering how many of the raiders had gone for her. It wasn't all of them but a significant amount. "Laird give me a copy of all the cockpit footage when you get it."

"Sir?"

"Just do it," she said and walked away from the deck shouting out a few orders behind her.

A few hours later and Kara was sat alone in the Ready room, flipping through reels of film from the confrontation with the cylons. Laird had brought it to her just as she had finished her shower. She was still on alert status, so she had dressed back into her flight suit.

The footage from her viper was shaky and due to the speed of her manoeuvres she was finding it difficult to distinguish which vipers had been after her. She leant forwards, twisting her head to try and see the raider as she spun over her viper, smiling broadly when less than a second later it was destroyed, its blood splattering over the lens of the camera.

"Helo told me you were in here," said the voice of Lee suddenly from behind her.

Kara spun in her seat, "hey."

"Nice move," replied Lee, nodding his head to the camera.

"It was pretty awesome" said Kara turning back to the footage. She stood up and changed the disc before sitting back down again. She frowned when she started watching the footage from Duck's viper, which was sat just below and behind her wing at first.

She was aware that Lee had moved to sit next to her. "Care to tell me why you're watching everyone's cockpit footage, or should I just guess it has something to do with the viper sitting down on the deck looking as if it's been the victim of a massacre."

"It looks worse than it was Lee."

"That footage would suggest otherwise, it was close."

"That's not what worries me," replied Kara and focused her attention back on the footage. The two raiders had seemed to come out of nowhere, falling into formation right on her tail. "They went right for me."

"I think you're ready too much into it, they were just going for a target."

"Look," she said and rewound the tape backwards, slowing it down. "See where they came from?" She walked over and pointed at the corner of the screen. The two raiders were flying almost parallel before suddenly changing direction towards her. "They had their guns on Showboat before veering away, passing right in front of Duck and then onto me."

"Okay, put it this way, how would they know it was you?"

Kara shrugged, "Reputation? I was the one blowing most of the toasters away. Either that or they just read the name on the side of my ship."

"From that far away? I doubt it. I have a better idea, perhaps they were going for the ship that was clearly the top gun."

She rewound the footage again, seeing that the two raiders changed course just as she destroyed another one. "Maybe you're right, but it's still something they've never done before."

"You think they're starting to become more aware, remembering?"

"Maybe, I don't know. I'm pretty screwed though if they start remembering who blew them up," she added only half seriously.

"Don't Kara," said Lee with a wince. "I nearly had a heart attack when you went into that spin."

"Duck was panicking, I only ricocheted off the toaster, and I had it completely under control."

"I don't doubt that, but if the toasters are starting to become more aware then we need to monitor their movements, watch the camera footage after each encounter."

"Is that an order?" asked Kara playfully with a grin on her face.

"Does it need to be?" asked Lee looking a little confused.

Kara shrugged, "no, I just miss you bossing me around, it was boring not being able to wind you up with my insubordination."

Lee pulled her to him for a hug, placing a kiss to her head. "You'll always be my hot shot problem pilot."

"Is that a promise?" Kara leant forwards into Lee and placed a soft kiss to his lips before he could answer. "So where are we going next XO?"

"We have a few more jumps before we reach a star cluster, which Fisk wants us to navigate around."

"Won't that take longer?"

"Yes, but the radiation levels inside the cluster are probably immense, plus it'll only take us about three more weeks to go round it."

"Then what?"

"Just another long sequence of jumps until we reach the nebula."

"And then we just sit there and hope the next marker to Earth appears?"

"Something like that yeah," replied Lee with a small smile. "Come on, you have some pilots to train about time keeping."

Kara groaned and she stood up from her chair and made to leave the room, "that was so embarrassing, I'm gonna strangle Hotdog when I see him."

She then walked out leaving Lee alone in the Ready room. He walked over and stuck in the recording from Kara's viper, watching it closely. Her control of the stick was incredible, each movement beautiful as she blasted away two raiders with one shot and then devastated any enemy that came into her sights. She was truly amazing and Lee even found his heart racing as he watched the viper flip suddenly end on end to take on the vipers that were on her tail. The debris came at her unavoidably jerking her viper away sharply at an angle.

He paused the tape at that moment, wanting to rewind and watch the whole sequence again. Fumbling with the remote, he hit the wrong button making the footage step slowly forwards, creating a blur on the screen. Looking up, Lee was mesmerised by the black and white swirl that was now displayed in front of him. It reminded him of the storm again, his eyes gazing forwards into the eye.

He felt a feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach and knew instinctively that something was coming.


	51. Maelstrom

**AN: It's actually been a long time since I've watched Maelstrom so I've made it up myself… ;-)**

Chapter 50

_She could feel the swirling storm drawing her in, urging her to keep going until the pressures on her viper were too great and tore her apart. But the thrall was too much for her, the colourful pattern of yellow, red and blue that had haunted her every footsteps, was too powerful to pull away from. This was the end of her life, scattered amongst the stars, the light blinding her eyes as peace and resignation overtook her._

"_Kara," she could hear Lee say from afar._

"_It's okay," she replied as she let go of all the fear from her past, embracing the light. "I'm not afraid."_

"_Kara!"_

"_I'll see you on the other side," was the last thing she said before the light swarmed around her, her viper buckling under the pressure and fracturing in a ball of flame._

_The only sounds that remained in the light were Lee's shouts of "no!" as she headed off into the unknown, the pain etched in his voice._

Lee jerked awake violently from his dream as he felt the tap on his arm, shaking him back into consciousness. He felt stiff and groggy as he sat up in the uncomfortable chair, his heart hammering in his chest. It took him a few moments to remember where he was and then the constant beep of machinery reminded him. How could he forget?

The lights in lifestation were dimmed, looking almost haunted, and a medicinal smell hung in the air.

"Major," he heard on the periphery of his mind.

The dream he had been having was still playing over in his head. It had been the same every night since he had lost her. Sometimes he was watching from afar as his wife disappeared into the clouds and then exploded. Other times it was as if he was her, but the outcome was always the same and he was powerless to stop it.

"Major!" he heard again and jerked his head upwards seeing Fisk standing above him.

The man looked worried, his eyes betraying his exhaustion. Lee straightened himself up in the uncomfortable chair and raised a hand to his chin. He had a five day growth of a beard forming. "Sorry sir," he said.

"No offence, but I've not seen you like this since we found you half dying on that heavy raider." replied the Commander. "You look like hell."

Lee didn't respond, merely sat back in the chair, refusing to move. He had been sitting here for five days now, only leaving the chair when he needed to use the head.

"Your babysitter is needed for her other duties and everyone else is busy filling in for…" he stopped himself. "Everyone else is occupied."

"I can't leave here," was all Lee could croak in response.

Fisk sighed, "Your children need you right now, they have no idea what is going on."

"And we do?"

"I also need my XO back on duty."

Lee looked up, his eyes red raw from the lack of sleep and tears. "I've lost my wife…" he said in a weak voice. At the moment he didn't care about his duties as an officer. All he cared about was getting his wife back. The guilt was eating away at his soul.

Fisk looked at him with sympathy, "You think I don't know what that feels like? It took me months to come to the realisation that my wife must be dead down on Caprica."

"This is different."

"Yes it is. You know what's happened to your wife, I don't. You also still have your children, a gift few people have." Lee didn't acknowledge his words so he continued. "I tell you this now, if…when, she comes back then she will be pissed off to know that you sat here wasting away for weeks just watching her die."

Those words hit home. Staring across from his chair, Lee looked on at the figure lying prone in the hospital bed, her golden hair splayed across the pillow. Various tubes and wires were attached to her sleeping form. Gently her chest rose and fell underneath the covers, the only signs life.

Lee's mind was decided. He sat back in his chair ignoring Fisk who, knowing he had lost, walked away.

Lee was resolute. He was not going to leave the lifestation until his wife came back to him again. Leaning his head in his hands, he continued his constant vigil again.

_oooo_

_Two weeks earlier…_

Kara swooped the spoonful of mush towards Joseph and with a giggle he swallowed the food down obediently, slapping his hands against the table with glee. Mealtime seemed to be his favourite time of day at the moment and Kara was cherishing every moment of it.

"You like that mush?" she asked with a crinkle of her nose.

Joseph replied with a big grin and slapped his hands again. Lena, on the other hand, stuck out her tongue and made a noise.

"Me too kiddo," replied Kara to her daughter. "But you've gotta eat it I'm afraid. When we find Earth, I promise I'll get you something better." She held out the spoon for her daughter who took a mouthful, looking up at her mother with bright wide eyes. "That's my girl."

"Dada?" asked Lena, which had been her first full word and seemed to be her answer to everything at the moment. Lee was still beaming with pride about it.

"Dada's working, so you have me this morning," replied Kara with a smile, spooning some more mush into Joseph's mouth.

"Dada?" asked Lena again.

"How about saying momma?" asked Kara and then tried to mouth it out for her.

"Dada," said Lena happily.

Kara's shoulders drooped slightly and said jokingly, "fine kiddo, have it your way. But if your dad doesn't wipe that smug grin off his face, your momma might have to do it for him."

Joseph squealed excitedly smacking his hand against the bowl of mush and sending it flying over the table. This thoroughly impressed him and Lena and they both clapped happily. Kara was less amused at the mess, but she couldn't help but smile at the laughter from her children.

"Come on, we need to go in search of some more now. We'll leave this mess for your dad to clear up." She lifted them both down from their highchairs and walked them out towards the Mess hall.

It was rare when Kara got the opportunity to spend a morning with her children, so she was all too happy to extend that time into a visit to fetch more food before taking them to the nursery and starting her shift at 1200 hours, followed by her CAP at 1500 hours.

It had been four weeks since their first encounter with the cylons. Since then they had seen one raider, but had managed to destroy it before it had a chance to report in. The Pegasus has successfully managed to plot a course around the star cluster, which had gone supernova soon afterwards, and there was another jump planned for 1200 hours. The days seemed to take ages to go by because of the boring monotony, but at least the stress of the first encounter had gone.

The Mess hall was quiet when they entered, with only a few officers who were waiting for their afternoon shift to start. Joseph gripped onto her hand tightly as he toddled along with Lena obediently holding on to his other hand. They sat quietly together at their own table, eating the extra rations Kara had managed to procure.

"Morning Starbuck," said Showboat walking over and taking a seat opposite. She waved to the twins who giggled back. "Damn Starbuck are you sure they're your kids? They're far too sweet."

Kara smiled, "they must get it from their dad."

"Dada?" asked Lena looking up inquisitively and holding out her spoon.

"Your dad's working, remember?" replied Kara. Lee had been on shift since six am.

"That's too cute," said Showboat taking a seat opposite. "You're a daddy's girl are you?" she cooed at Lena who grinned widely. "She's going to be the master of manipulation with Apollo when she's a teenager."

"He'll love it."

"Ollo?" asked Joseph chiming in.

Showboat grinned, "Were you trying to Apollo?"

Kara pulled Joseph onto her knee and placed a kiss to his head, "no way is Apollo going to be your first word kiddo."

Showboat laughed, "You should have seen the look on Apollo's face last week when he told me Lena said dada. Feeling left out are we?"

"No, I just want to show them the right way," replied Kara jokingly. She paused a moment, pushing away a headache that was starting to form, and then continued on a more serious note. "You ready for the next jump?"

"My viper's prepped and good to go just in case."

Kara nodded. Showboat was due to fly CAP with her at 1500 hours and they would both be on alert and down on the hangar deck by 1300 hours. She looked down at Joseph who was wriggling in her lap.

"Ollo," he said again as she let him down onto the floor.

Showboat laughed, "how 'bout saying Starbuck Seph?"

Joseph looked at the Captain with wide eyes, "tah?"

"Don't encourage him Showboat," said Kara as she stood up from her chair and took her children's hands. "See you down on the deck in 30."

"Okay sir," she replied and waved at the twins as the small family walked out of the Mess hall.

Kara didn't want to have to drop off Joseph and Lena at the small nursery, wishing that they could stay together all day. She felt a twinge of emptiness as she left them, hearing their happy giggles as they started to play with toys with the other children.

A dark weight suddenly seemed to land upon her shoulders, pushing her down as she walked away. She didn't want to leave their side.

Reluctantly she walked quickly to her quarters to change into her flightsuit and then headed to the hangar deck. It was busy as normal when she arrived, with many deckhands preparing the vipers for the FTL jump.

Kara walked around her bird, checking that all the components were intact and in good working order. Anya had finally been released back on duty following her accident and was assisting her.

"She's looking good," said the young deckhand. But for an inexplicable reason, Kara found herself checking the viper again, looking over everything with precision. "Are you okay sir?" asked Anya, when she had finished her second sweep.

"Sorry?" said Kara looking up, her mind distracted.

"You seemed to be miles away," replied Anya with a smile, holding out her clipboard which contained a checklist.

Kara took it swiftly and then signed off on everything, initialling at the bottom. "Thanks," she replied shortly and then sat herself down on the steps to her cockpit.

She couldn't explain the feeling that had suddenly overcome her body and mind. One moment she was fine and happy with her children, the next minute she felt as if the entire universe was watching her. A strange feeling nagged at her mind, telling her that she needed to do something, but for the life of her she couldn't figure out what.

It was only the sound of Shaw over the comm system that brought her mind back to the present. She was telling the crew that the co-ordinates for the next jump had been entered and the one minute countdown had begun. With each second the nagging sensation pressed heavier and heavier upon Kara's shoulders, even making her brow mottle slightly with sweat. The pull of the FTL drive made her stomach lurch more than normal and then it was over.

"Sir?" asked Anya. "Sir?"

"What?" shouted out Kara in response making the deckhand step back slightly. A few eyes from the deck turned in their direction looking shocked at her outburst.

"You don't look well sir, are you sure you're okay?"

Kara wiped away the sweat from her brow. She felt hot as if she was getting a fever. "I might be coming down with something, no biggie."

"Do you want to call a replacement for your CAP?"

"What? No…no fever is going to keep me out the sky." She pushed herself up from the steps as she heard Shaw giving them the all clear. "I'll be back after my briefing," she called over her shoulder as she strode off.

Anya looked on puzzled as Kara walked away across the hangar deck, the weight of the Worlds on her shoulders.

_oooo_

Lee walked through the corridors of the ship with a slight bounce in his step as he neared the nursery. He had been on the early shifts all week and had missed getting up with the kiddies and feeding them their breakfast. Lena had also said her first word, "dada," which had made him beam with pride.

Their latest FTL jump had gone as smoothly as could be expected. The system they had jumped to was in no way extraordinary, just more space. Fisk had ordered some time for repairs considering the cylons had failed to show up in the last few weeks, so the Pegasus had neared a gas giant planet for some cover. The only disadvantage was the radiation from the planet, which interfered with their dradis, but that disadvantage could also prevent the cylons from seeing them should they decide to jump into the area. Extra CAPs would be essential for spotting cylons early and Lee planned to volunteer his services to assist. It had been far too long since he had been in a viper.

He looked at his watch. It was 1530 hours. Only thirty minutes ago Kara had set off on her CAP with Showboat. He had smiled as she reported in, but her usual pilot banter was missing for some reason.

Lee entered the nursery and crouched down by his children who were playing happily. They were painting with their fingers, sharing the same piece of paper.

"Dada!" said Lena and crawled over to grab his leg.

"Whoa there," he replied with a smile. "Your dad will get in trouble if he gets paint all over his uniform."

Of course Lena didn't understand and continued towards him. Luckily one of the carers picked her up gently and carried her over to a sink in the corner to get cleaned up. Joseph meanwhile held up their piece of paper with a grin and Lee took hold of it. There were various colourful fingerprints around the page and some splodges of colour in the middle.

"Tah," said Joseph with a grin.

"Is this for me?" asked Lee.

"Tah," repeated Joseph.

"Is it a star then Seph, is that what you're saying?"

"Tah."

One of the carers walked over and guided him to the sinks where his sister was still being cleaned up. "He's being saying that all day."

Lee laughed, "Knowing Kara she's given up on getting him to say momma and moved onto Starbuck."

"You know your kids are very advanced for their age," said the nurse as she brought the now clean twins back to Lee. "They both painted exactly the same thing today, which is rare at so young."

"They do have an overachiever for a mother," replied Lee. "She's very artistic."

"Well they certainly take after her."

Lee lifted Joseph onto his hip and took Lena's hand. "I'm hoping they don't inherit her right hook though."

He was about to walk out of the nursery when he heard his name called over the comm, demanding his return to the CIC. With a sigh he placed Joseph back on the floor with the carer and walked quickly down the corridor.

When he arrived Fisk was staring at the dradis with a frown.

"What's going on?" asked Lee, also looking up at the monitor. He didn't see anything out of the ordinary.

"Starbuck said she had a visual of a heavy raider in the upper atmosphere of the planet," replied Fisk.

"Why haven't we gone on alert status?"

"Well so far your wife is the only one to have seen it. She just went diving straight after it and stopped communicating with us."

The comm system crackled, "Pegasus, this is Showboat. I'm losing my visual on Starbuck, she keeps going down into the atmos." Lee could hear the slight panic in her voice. Something was wrong, very wrong.

Fisk turned to him, "if she keeps going the pressure will crush her ship like a tin can."

Lee stared at him and then slid a comm headset over his head. "Starbuck, this is Pegasus do you copy?" Silence. "Report in Starbuck, what do you hear?"

He only heard Showboat's response, "I can't see her Pegasus, I…"

Lee gripped the side of the consol and made a silent prayer before speaking into the headset again, "Kara, please answer." Fisk looked at him with concern. "Kara."

There was a crackle and then finally he heard her voice, "I keep losing it Pegasus."

"Do you have a visual?" asked Lee.

"No, Lee…I, can't…"

"Then come back to the ship and land your bird Kara, please." He had tried to hide the emotion in his voice, but his distress was clear.

There was an agonising pause and then Showboat's voice came over the comm again, sounding relieved. "Pegasus, Showboat, I can see her. She's coming out of the atmosphere and is heading for home."

Lee leant up against the consol with relief, his stomach feeling slightly nauseous. Fisk looked over at him, looking serious.

"Either your wife is right and there is something down there," he said. "Or she's gone completely crazy."

"I'll have a word with her sir and see what we can get from the cockpit footage."

Lee wasted no time. He walked out of the CIC and made his way to the hangar deck in the desperate need to see Kara and hold her.

_oooo_

Kara stroked her hand down the side of the pristine looking viper. She was sure the heavy raider had collided with her in the storm, and positive that she had followed it doggedly through the clouds. Then she had lost it and all she could see was the bright mandala in the skies that had followed her like a shadow her entire life.

"I've looked over every inch," said Laird. "There's no new battle damage, nothing. Are you sure you were hit?"

"I'm not frakking crazy Chief," she replied and then for a moment she stepped back and thought about it. _Was she going crazy? _There was no damage, so she can't have been hit. Ever since they had jumped, she had developed a headache that thumped through her head, telling her over and over that she needed to do something. "Just do me a favour and get the cockpit footage will you," she demanded and threw the sleeves of her flightsuit off her arms.

"Kara," said Lee as he strode across the deck looking slightly out of breath. "Are you okay?"

"Apparently I'm going crazy."

Lee looked puzzled and she didn't volunteer an explanation, striding out of the hangar deck quickly making everyone move in her wake.

She could feel Lee following behind her as she sped through the corridors, only giving up when she locked herself in their small bathroom. She stripped off her flightsuit quickly and settled in under the lukewarm shower, trying to shove images of the gas planet out of her head. She had been so sure, had _felt_, the heavy raider ricochet off the side of her viper. All of her instincts had then told her to chase it down, to plunge deeper and deeper into the atmosphere.

Flashes of the yellow, red and blue pattern had followed her all her life like a shadow, and now she was frakking hallucinating about it in the outer atmosphere of a gas planet, only minutes away from hitting the hard deck. Something willed her to continue, to keep flying into oblivion. Was that what her "special destiny" really was? To blow up on the other side of the galaxy at her own volition? If it was, then the Gods really did have a bad sense of humour.

She felt a pang in her gut. She didn't want to die, couldn't bear not to see her children grow up, to hold Lee again. Tears stung her eyes and flowed down her cheeks, mixing with the water that had already gone cold. This couldn't be her destiny she hoped, but the pain that resonated through her head willed her to go back out there.

When she finally emerged from the head having changed into her duty blues, she found Lee sitting in their room on the floor, with Lena and Joseph playing about in front of him.

"You okay?" he asked, concern etched across his face.

"Just a headache," she replied and took a seat on their little sofa.

"Do you want to talk about what happened?"

"Not now," she replied softly and cradled her head in her hands.

"Hey," said Lee more cheerfully. "The carers at the nursery think the kiddies might have some artistic talent already."

"Yeah?" said Kara and looked up at him with a smile, some of the pain easing.

"Look what they drew." Kara felt her heart leap in her chest as Lee held up a piece of paper. Splodged across the front in paint was the pattern again, circles of blue and red with yellow in the middle. "Kara?"

She could feel the sweat mottling her brow as she stared at the images, willing them to go away.

"Kara, what's wrong, you're worrying me?"

"Lee, please tell me what you see on that paper," she replied, a few tears trickling down her cheeks, her headache pounding again.

He stared at her for a moment and then finally replied, "looks like a couple of circles of colour."

"What colours Lee," said Kara, her voice sounding harsh.

"Yellow, red and blue." Kara gasped slightly making Lee frown. "What's going on Kara?"

"I don't know…I think it's just a headache."

"Lie down and have a sleep."

Kara shook her head, "I have too much to do."

"Not any more, XO's orders," he guided her to the bed and she laid down obediently, covering her head with her pillow. He knew something was seriously wrong, but wouldn't press her now. "I love you Kara," he said and stroked her arm.

She removed the pillow from her face briefly and said, "I love you too, never forget that," before turning over and closing her eyes. A few minutes later her breathing slowed and she appeared to be in a deep sleep.

Softly, Lee scooped up Lena and Joseph and took them out of the room to let his wife sleep in peace.

_oooo_

Lee was awoken as he felt Kara tossing over wildly in her sleep. She had been deeply asleep for hours since crashing out. It was now the middle of the night and she was still dressed in her uniform. Lee thought she must be coming down with some sort of fever. He reached out his arm and turned on the lamp above their bed.

The bed sheets were sodden with her sweat and he could see a look of distress on her face. Gently, Lee stroked her arm, saying her name softly.

She awoke with a start, her breathing rampant.

"Hey, it's okay," said Lee. "It was just a nightmare."

Sitting up, Kara pushed back her damp hair, her breathing slowing back to a normal rhythm.

"Frak," was all she said.

Lee sat up, his voice nearly cracking as he placed an arm around her shoulders. "Please tell me what's going on," he asked desperately.

Kara looked towards him and stroked a hand down his face, "I don't know, I wish I could tell you, but I really don't know."

"What was the dream about?"

"My mum of all frakking people."

"Really?" asked Lee slightly shocked. Kara had once told him about her abusive mother back on Caprica, but the woman had never really come back up into conversation. "What happened?"

"I was a little girl again and she was mad with me for something, hurting me. Then she was telling me that I had to be strong and kept going on about special destinies." She paused, taking a deep breath as she looked down at her hands, playing with her finger. "I don't know what's wrong with me. This morning I was fine and then when we were jumping…I dunno."

"Remember what you said to me the other week? It's just a dream, don't worry about it. We'll see Phillips in the morning and he'll probably confirm that you're just getting a cold or something."

Kara nodded her head, but she didn't really believe his words. The dream had been something more. It was as if she had been watching herself as a third person as her mother punished her. Gently she rolled back down onto the mattress, nestling into Lee's side. Her head was still pounding from her headache and she felt as if she was floating about a metre off the bed. Closing her eyes, she silently prayed to the Gods to help her.

The following morning after taking the kiddies to the nursery, Kara and Lee went to the Ready room to play over the cockpit footage from the day before. They had been doing this only a few weeks before, when they had seen the raiders gunning for Kara, but today they could see nothing.

"I swear it was there Lee, I saw it."

"I believe you Kara, but I can't see it on the cameras, I'm sorry."

She rewound the tape and played it again, this time in slow motion. "This doesn't make any frakking sense."

"Are you sure it hit you?"

"Yes I'm frakking sure," she replied harshly.

"There's a lot of turbulence down there."

"I'm not some half-assed nugget Lee. I know the difference between turbulence and a frakking heavy raider hitting me."

Lee took the remote from her and paused the disc. "Well it's not there now. So either the camera is broken, you're mistaken or…."

"…I'm crazy," added Kara, looking at him with a small smile.

"I wasn't going to say that."

"Come on Lee, how long have we known each other? Six, seven years? You _must_ have seen this coming."

Lee laughed despite the seriousness of the situation. He then fell silent and just stared up at the screen. What he hadn't told her, what he was afraid to tell her, was that the images of the gas planet that danced about on the screen in front of them looked exactly like the storm from his dream. The same dream that he had been having every day for the past few weeks. He had looked up into the eye of a maelstrom once before as a child and now he was seeing it again and it seemed to be consuming his wife.

"Lee," she interrupted in a small voice.

He turned to her, "yeah?"

"Don't let me go out there again…please," she asked. Lee's brows furrowed with perplexed concern as he saw a tear escape and roll down her cheek. "Remember on our wedding night, you said that you would pull me back if I asked you to?"

"Kara, I don't…"

"I'm asking that of you now. Ground me, whatever, just don't let me go out there."

"It'll be fine. Hey, I'll even fly your wing if you want me to, just don't let this ground you."

Kara looked at him seriously, "Lee if you let me go out there, I don't think I will be coming back."

"What do you mean?"

"I can't explain it. All I know is that something keeps calling me to go out there, wanting me to keep going down into that storm."

Lee placed a hand on her arm, "that will kill you Kara, the viper can't take the pressure."

"I know Lee, that's why I need you to ground me. Please."

The look on her face was enough to make Lee's heart melt. Slowly he nodded his head, "I'll tell Fisk that you're grounded until further notice."

"Thank you," she replied with a small smile and leant her head on his shoulder. She wasn't afraid of the storm. She had always feared death, had run away from it and cheated it, but not anymore. Now she embraced life and could finally feel true happiness. Now all she feared was being apart from her husband and children.

She stared up at the screen seeing the colours of the mandala staring down, an image which she had always known and which her own children were now painting. Feeling the safe embrace of Lee's arm around her shoulders, she prayed that she would finally be free.

To be continued...


	52. Maelstrom Part Two

Chapter 51

"What do you mean she's grounded?" asked Fisk angrily, throwing down a star chart forcefully onto the table in front of his sofa. Lee was stood on the other side, his hands clasped behind him, standing alert.

"I've grounded her sir," he replied.

"She's my best pilot, not to mention my CAG, there better be a damn good reason why."

"That heavy raider she saw yesterday didn't appear on the cockpit footage."

Fisk leant back on the sofa and folded his arms in front of his chest. "Are you telling me she's was hallucinating out there?"

"I don't know sir," replied Lee resignedly. "All I can say is that she doesn't trust her nerve out there at the moment."

"Everyone gets shaky behind the stick sometimes. I need my CAG out there, no arguments."

Lee scrunched his fingers together behind his back. He needed to stay strong for his wife. "My wife doesn't get shaky behind the stick, not even when she was a nugget on her first flight. Sir, please listen to me. I can't fully explain why, but please trust me. She needs to stay grounded for the time being."

Fisk stared him down for a few moments before looking down at his charts. "If it was Cain sitting here now you wouldn't be asking for this."

Lee squared his shoulders, "with all due respect to Admiral Cain sir, I don't believe we would be here on this mission if she was still in command. We'd be off hunting the cylons or already destroyed trying. You're the one that is in command now."

Fisk sighed, "I knew when I first read Thrace's record that she was going to give me a permanent headache." Lee smiled briefly. "How long for?"

"I don't know sir."

Fisk sighed again, "fine, but I hope you know I'm putting a lot of faith into you two. Don't make me regret it."

Lee felt his body relax slightly, "thank you sir."

"Who do we replace her with as CAG for the time being?"

"I believe Starbuck can still perform her duties on board sir."

Fisk shook his head, "if she can't fly then she's also not fit for active duty. Let her rest for now and we'll review the position in a week." Lee nodded his head once in understanding. "Alright, dismissed. Let Stinger know that he's the CAG until Thrace comes back."

Lee saluted sharply and then walked out of Fisk's quarters promptly. He knew Kara was going to be upset with being taken fully off duty.

It was 1200 hours so he walked straight to his quarters, hearing the sounds of their children before he reached the hatch and then stepped inside. Normally when he opened the door he would see Kara smiling down at them happily, but today she seemed to be staring off into the distance.

"Dada," squealed Lena as soon as he stepped inside, making Kara turn towards him. She looked as if she had just been pulled out of a trance, faltering for a few moments before smiling at him.

"Hey," she said softly. "What did Fisk say?"

"He wasn't happy, but he agreed," replied Lee picking up Lena who had toddled over and gripped his leg. "The catch is that you're not to resume any duties until your better."

"You better take this then," replied Kara blandly, seeming not to care that she was being pulled fully from duty. She stood up from her chair and walked over to a cupboard high up on the wall. She took out her sidearm and held it out to him. Ever since Lena and Joseph had started crawling she had taken to placing her sidearm up there, removing the clip every time.

Lee placed Lena back on the floor. "I don't think Fisk meant for you to hand that in."

She shrugged, her voice still unanimated, "Just take it Lee, please."

His voice nearly cracked as he took it from her hand. "Kara you're scaring me."

He could see the tears pooling in her eyes and she walked over to him, placing a soft kiss to his lips. "It's going to be okay," she said in a soothing voice.

He wished he could understand, possess faith deep enough to believe it. "I'm afraid of what's happening to you."

"It's okay Lee, I promise. We'll always find a way to find each other."

Lee swallowed hard, she wasn't making any sense. It was as if she had been holding a previous conversation with someone else entirely and expected him to catch up. Pooling his strength, he remembered that he didn't have to understand what was happening, but he did believe in her.

"Do you need some rest?" he asked as she gripped the sides of her head with her hands.

"I'll be fine," she replied weakly. "It's just a headache."

"If it's still there tomorrow then I'm dragging you to doc Phillips, no arguments."

"Agreed," she said pulling a mock salute.

With a frown, and feeling slightly defeated, Lee turned around and walked back out of the quarters to continue his shift, a feeling of foreboding dread weighing down on his shoulders.

_oooo_

Kara barely noticed the day and night go past. She wasn't thinking of anything in particular, but everywhere she looked she seemed to be staring into oblivion. The only thing that kept her barely conscious was the sound of her children playing happily, warming her heart.

That night she didn't sleep, choosing to get up and sit in the children's room, just watching as they slept peacefully. Her headache still pounded throughout her head, but that was nothing compared to the disturbing invisible force that kept pushing her to go back out into that storm. It was like an obsessive compulsive urge, an irrational need to fly her viper until it hit the hard deck, crushing the life out of her.

She didn't fear death, but desired life more and everything inside her resisted the temptation.

By the time Lee awoke at about 0700 hours, Kara had already been through the shower with Lena and Joseph. If only for a few minutes, the warmth of the water cascading down over them felt comforting. She was sitting feeding them breakfast, just like she always did, trying to look normal to Lee, but really she was running on automatic.

"Hey," he said and walked over to give her a kiss.

"Dada," squealed Lena happily.

"Good morning my Little Lee," he replied with a smile and swooped down to give her a big kiss to her forehead, followed by Joseph.

"Tah," his son replied, half sucking on his finger.

"How are you feeling?" he asked Kara, sitting next to her.

Kara smiled as convincingly as she could, "a lot better, headache has finally subsided." She didn't know why she lied to him, but she felt compelled to protect him from the truth. She was feeling worse. Part of her wanted to go and see Phillips, but then she knew he wouldn't be able to do anything. This type of headache could not be cured by a pill. It was the weight and pull of fate that was causing it.

Lee placed a kiss to her head looking slightly more relaxed, "glad to hear it."

"When are we leaving here?" she asked in a small voice.

"In a couple of days I believe."

Kara nodded, wanting to cry. She wasn't sure if it was the location or time that was affecting her. At least if they jumped away she would know.

She carried on feeding Lena and Joseph like normal as Lee got ready and then left for his shift. It felt strange not having to be on duty and she had certainly never expected to be acting as a full-time mum. The hours dragged past as she just sat there watching them play, not fully able to join in because of the excruciating pain that pounded through her head.

"Dada," said Lena happily as she gripped a crayon unsteadily, scribbling on the piece of paper in front of her.

Kara felt her cheeks flush as she looked down. Lena had managed a big scribble in blue.

"Is it hot in here or is it just me?" she asked making her children look up confused.

Kara stood and walked over to the hatch door, pulling it slightly ajar to let in a breeze. She closed her eyes as gently the air blew into her face, making her hair sway. A sudden flash of the mandala came to her mind, swirling before blinking into another image, an apartment she hadn't seen in a long time. Briefly she saw her mother sitting at her dining room table, cigarette in hand, before the sound of her children brought her back to the present.

They were looking up at her with eager eyes.

"Stah," said Joseph and held out his hand.

Kara walked over to them slowly, looking down at their scrap of paper. She felt her breathing falter as she saw that Joseph had scribbled his red crayon in the middle of Lena's blue scribble. The mandala screamed out at her again, swirling round and round.

She was confused and disorientated. Was she supposed to even be here now? Should she have already hit that hard deck, blowing herself apart? The possibilities were crushing her mind.

"Stah?" squeaked Joseph as she gripped the side of her head, trying to push away the pain.

"No, no, no, no," she stammered out, shaking her head. Tears were streaming down her cheeks as she looked at her children, her heart aching for them. "I'm sorry," she whimpered before her vision blurred. She could see her mother's apartment again and a blonde child crying with blood dripping from her nose.

Reaching her hand up to her face she could feel a dark thick liquid.

"Please," she begged to the Gods. "Please don't make me leave them."

Her vision cleared again, seeing her children who had started crying. They were reaching out their pudgy hands towards her, and then everything went black.

_oooo_

Lee stretched out his neck as he stood in the CIC. Words couldn't describe how boring his job had become. He was a pilot, needing the adrenalin boost that came from negative g-forces to keep him motivated. He was not meant to stand behind a dradis consol. Already the lack of exercise was taking its toll and he could feel his duty blue slacks feeling slightly tighter. After he had escaped from the cylons the waistband had been loose, needing a belt to stop them from falling down.

"How was Major Thrace this morning?" asked Fisk casually after he walked in for his afternoon shift.

"A little better sir," replied Lee with a smile. "She might be fit for duty sooner than expected."

"I'll let Phillips decide that."

"I thought you'd be happy to have her back on duty sooner rather than later?" asked Lee with a frown.

"Of course I would, she's my CAG and best pilot, but I also don't want to see her flying into the side of the ship because she wasn't ready." He looked down at some star charts, telling Lee that the conversation was over.

Lee was feeling slightly happier today. Seeing his wife deteriorate had cut away at his heart. That night had been the first night that week when he hadn't been awoken by her nightmares, pained by her evident distress. Even though she still looked the pale, her headaches had stopped and Lee felt that she had gotten past the worst of whatever was affecting her.

"When are we going to jump again sir?" he asked after a number of minutes.

"The planet is providing the best cover possible while we complete our repairs, so another week perhaps."

"A week?" asked Lee shocked. "I thought the original plan was for only a few days?"

"I'm getting numerous reports telling me the wear and tear is worse than originally thought. It makes sense to hide out here for the time being."

"And what if there _is_ a heavy raider out there?"

Fisk looked at him with a raised eyebrow, "do you still believe there might be? Because I haven't seen one, nor did anyone else but your wife who's declared herself unfit to fly."

"Nevertheless sir, we should still stay frosty, just in case."

"We're always frosty Major."

"How's Stinger doing as the CAG?" asked Lee with curiosity. He had hoped that Fisk would allow him to over the CAG duties instead, but evidentially the ship needed an XO.

"He's getting back into it slowly I believe. I was going to head down there now whilst they hold the afternoon briefing. Perhaps it would make you feel better if you gave them a lecture on staying frosty."

Lee didn't bite back, merely following the Commander out of the CIC to the Ready room where they addressed the pilots. Despite their early reticence towards Kara when she first became the CAG, they all appeared to hold genuine concern for her wellbeing. Even Kat refrained from making any snippy comments. Lee had assured them that she was just unwell, but would hopefully be back on duty soon.

"Are you satisfied now?" asked Fisk as they exited the ready room and stopped outside in the corridor.

Lee wanted to sigh, "Yes sir, I apologise if I came across as if I didn't have faith in the pilots. All I meant is that we should be ready to jump at any moment."

"Shaw programmed in the co-ordinates for the next jump last night. If we so much as catch a whiff of the cylons then we'll be out of here."

Lee nodded. He felt a tug at his slacks, pulling his leg forwards to stop it. "Perhaps we can have some training drills whilst we're hanging around here?"

"That's a good idea…" began Fisk but Lee was distracted by the feel of his slacks snagging again.

"What the…" he said and looked down behind him, shocked to see his son standing there gripping the cloth of his uniform. "Seph, what…?" Lee's heart started hammering in his chest, something was wrong, very wrong.

"Stah," said Joseph looking up at him with wide blue eyes.

For a moment he was too shocked to move then Fisk shouted out, "go, go!"

He sprinted off down the corridor towards his family quarters, seeing that the hatch door was ajar. The sound of wails reached him immediately. Knowing it was Lena squealing inside he pushed open the hatch quickly.

Kara was lying on the hard metal floor, her blonde hair splayed out with Lena pulling on her hand. Within seconds Lee was down by her side shouting out her name, but there was no response. Blood from her nose had spooled out down the side of her face and onto the floor. Too much blood for a mere nosebleed. He was almost afraid to place two fingers to her neck to check for a pulse, but was relieved to feel the gentle rhythm underneath his fingertips.

"Dada," sobbed out Lena, but Lee was busy trying to ensure that Kara was still breathing. The blood bubbling at her nose told him that she was.

The tears flowed down his cheeks as he softly stroked back some of her hair off her face. "Kara, please answer me."

He was about to scoop her into his arms when he heard Fisk shout out "no."

"What the frak do you mean _no_? We need to get her lifestation now!"

He looked up to see that the Commander was looking concerned, holding Joseph against his hip. "We don't know what's happened, so moving her could cause more injury." He didn't wait for an answer, he turned and picked up the telephone on the wall and dialled. "This is the Commander we have a medical emergency, send medics to the Adama family quarters stat."

Joseph started wailing in Fisk's arms until he placed him on the floor. The boy toddled over towards his mother, sitting himself down by her leg.

"Kara please answer me," begged Lee, ignoring Lena and Joseph's continuous wails.

It seemed to take forever for the medics arrive, taking Kara away on a stretcher with Lee running alongside. For the moment nothing else mattered to him, he had to be by his wife's side, and there he remained as the days dragged past.

Doc Phillips was none the wiser about what had caused Kara's coma. He had performed test after test, which revealed nothing. A brain scan showed that there was brain activity, which looked like she was peacefully dreaming. As far as Phillips could ascertain, she had not suffered from a stroke, aneurism, hematoma or brain damage and he was at a loss to explain a diagnosis. No-one could say with any certainty what had happened in her quarters. There was a bruise to her head, but Phillips suspected that had occurred when she collapsed. She had lost a lot of blood from the nose bleed, but not enough to induce a coma.

Phillips had merely said that she appeared to be "lost" in her own consciousness.

From his constant vigil, Lee had watched her sleeping. He had been sitting there for five days now, every night dreaming that he was seeing his wife hit the hard deck in the storm and blowing apart. It didn't make sense. That had not happened, they had avoided it.

It was now the afternoon, about six hours after Fisk had demanded that he return to work. Lee had felt a pang of guilt when the commander had mentioned Lena and Joseph, but as much as he wanted to be with them, he couldn't leave Kara's side.

He felt the presence of someone standing next to him and turned his head, seeing Helo standing there.

"I never thought I would have to see her like this again," he said making Lee turn his head back to his wife's bed. She looked soundly asleep as if nothing was wrong and would wake up any moment. "But it was different then."

Lee reflected for a moment, remembering that Helo had been there during Kara's last coma.

"At least she's not hooked up to a machine this time," added Helo sadly, the memory obviously painful. His eyes fixed on Lee's, "she's beaten the odds before."

"I don't know what happened," croaked Lee in response. "One day she was fine and the next…this."

"What did she say before it happened?"

Lee thought back, trying to remember everything she had said. "She had lots of headaches, a nightmare about her mother…"

"Why would she have a nightmare about her mother?"

Lee realised that Kara must not have told Helo about her frakked up childhood. "It's a long story, never mind. She saw that phantom heavy raider out in her viper. She told me that if she went out there again she would basically end up flying down into the atmos of that gas planet, killing herself. She even got freaked out by a picture Lena and Seph painted."

Helo frowned, "that's weird."

"Which part?"

"All of it, but especially the bit about the kiddies."

"She asked about the colours they had used. When she collapsed they were drawing something similar."

Helo paused for a moment as if he was mulling something over, giving it serious consideration before speaking. "I saw that," he said quietly. "And they've painted these over the past few days." Out of his pocket he pulled out two sheets of paper holding them out to Lee. "There's more. This pattern is the same one that Kara had painted on her apartment wall."

Completely covering the pages was the same pattern in blue, red and yellow. "Oh my Gods," muttered Lee and took hold of the pages, staring intently down at the images. He traced a finger of the largest circular pattern, which seemed to have a stick person drawn in the middle. "They're too young for this."

"Hera added the person in the middle," replied Helo and Lee removed his finger from the page.

He could feel tears pricking his eyes, and as much as he tried to refrain from crying in front of Helo, he felt them trickling down his face. "What's happening to my family?"

"I don't know, but I might be able to get some help…if you'll allow it."

"I don't care Helo, I'll try anything." Lee brushed the tears away with his sleeve. "I've been a lousy father the past five days," he added. Guilt was wracking his body, guilt for stopping Kara from flying and the abandonment of Lena and Joseph. He wondered if his wife would ever forgive him.

"They're fine," said Helo. "You're hardly in the state to cater for their every need, so leave that to me, Sharon and Meg."

Lee laughed briefly, "I never thought I would have a cylon for a babysitter." Helo didn't respond and Lee felt another pang of guilt that he had offended someone who was helping him so much. "Or as a friend and comrade," he added. "Thank you."

Helo's shoulders seemed to relax slightly. "Hera's enjoying having two children to play with, I've never seen her laugh and smile so much."

"They have that effect on people."

As if on cue he heard the familiar gurgle of Lena and Joseph. He strained to turn in his seat, seeing them standing at the front entrance to lifestation, both gripping on to Sharon's hands.

"Is it okay?" she asked softly and Helo motioned them in.

"I'm sorry Apollo," said Helo. "They need to see their parents."

Lee felt the guilt rock through him as his children pulled away from Sharon and ran over to him. He lifted them both onto his lap and gave them a hug, some of the pain lifting away from his body.

"Dada," said Lena and pulled at the small wisps of his beard.

Joseph pointed over to Kara's bed and said, "stah."

"Yeah that's right," replied Lee. "Your mom is sleeping at the moment."

There was no way that at not even 14 months the twins would understand what was happening, but he could still see the sadness on their faces. It still amazed him how intuitive they were.

"Come on, let's go and see your mom."

As he stood he lifted both of them onto his hip and walked them over to the bed. He could see the slow rise and fall of her chest beneath the bed sheets, her eyes softly fluttering as if she was dreaming. Phillips had tried everything to wake her up, but nothing had worked.

Gently Lee sat down Lena and Joseph onto the bed next to her, holding them against him, continuing his vigil.

_oooo_

_One day later_

Lee was surprised when he saw the Priestess Eliya walking into the lifestation. He had not seen her since Lena had been sick, when she had prayed over his daughter. The woman walked up to Kara's bed and stroked her hair back softly.

"I knew our paths would cross again," she said and then placed a kiss to her forehead.

Lee stood up from his chair and walked over, passing the cot where Lena and Joseph were enjoying an afternoon nap. "I didn't know you were on board the Pegasus," he said standing on the opposite side of the bed.

"I was not," replied the priestess with a smile. "I was journeying on board the Tylium ship. They needed a priestess to help with their faith on such a long journey and I knew I would be needed here again."

"How?"

"This woman's destiny has been written out in the stars since the beginning of time."

"And her destiny was to fall into a coma?" asked Lee sceptically.

The priestess smiled again, testing Lee's patience. "The destiny has been set out, not the path. Some paths are stronger than others to follow, many seem like the easiest route, but that doesn't mean they are necessarily right."

"Such as blowing up under the pressure of a planet's atmosphere?" asked Lee not sounding convinced.

The Priestess looked puzzled, "No-one knows the paths except Kara herself. Is that what she believed was going to happen?"

Lee felt himself blushing slightly with shame, "yes and she asked me to ground her, so I did."

"Perhaps Kara no longer wished to take such a perilous path any more. There was something much stronger keeping her here." The Priestess motioned over to the twin's cot. "Sacrifice may not seem logical to many, but it is written of throughout our history. That may have been the clearest path to Kara at one time, but not anymore. You changed everything."

"I've dreamt of her, like I am her, flying into that storm. I…I can't believe that could…"

"There is a strong bond between you two, that much is clear. Such a bond stretches to your children."

Lee held up his hand, "before you continue you should know that I don't believe in the Gods…"

The Priestess' smile did not falter. "But yet they will always believe in you, which is why they have entrusted you with one of their most precious gifts. Hasn't she always trusted in you, confided in you what she hides from everyone else?"

"You speak as if you know her."

"I have only met Kara twice in my life. The first time was when I prayed over your daughter."

"Then…how…?" he was willing himself not to believe in the fantastic.

"Exactly Lee Adama."

"Then what has happened to my wife?" he asked, his shoulders slumping.

"I do not know with any certainty. She may have resisted a very strong path. The weight of destiny pressing down is a powerful thing for a mortal mind to handle. As long as we are here it was continue to press down."

"So what _is _her destiny?"

The Priestess stroked a hand through Kara's hair again, "only she can answer that."

"Right," replied Lee. "One more question."

"Only one?"

Lee ignored her jibe and walked over to the twin's crib. He picked up their painting and took it to her. "What's this?"

The Priestess looked at it closely, "it looks like the Eye of Jupiter."

"The what?"

"It is an ancient symbol, believed to be a marker upon the route to Earth."

Lee felt his heart start to quicken. This was all too much for him. The realisation of what everything meant was starting to dawn upon him. He believed, knew, that Kara was destined to find Earth and this was the proof. Flying into that gas planet had been part of that journey, but Kara had chosen a different path because of them.

He guessed the Priestess was trying to tell him that they needed to jump away from the gas planet and to continue the journey to the nebula.

Convincing Fisk was going to be the difficult part.

_oooo_

The light was beautiful, surrounding her like a protective blanket. She wasn't dead, that much she knew. But where she was, she had no idea.

On the periphery of Kara's mind she could feel Lee's presence. He was her guide home, always there, her anchor to life.

As long as he was there with their children then there was no way she would pass over to the other side.


	53. A Glimpse of the Future Part Nine

**AN: I've been terrible at responding to reviews lately (and posting regularly) so I just want to send a big thank you, they are very much appreciated and help keep me motivated.**

Chapter 52

Caroline had stared up at the trail left by the ship until there was nothing left, feeling a burning ache in her chest as the ship had lifted off and flown away, not knowing if the pain would stop until Ford came back.

Even when twenty minutes had gone by, after her colleagues had all disappeared inside, she stood there, staring up into the clouds. But she was not alone. Standing forlorn next to her was Blue Eyes who seemed to be harbouring the same emotions as her.

It wasn't until thirty minutes had gone by, when Howell came out and walked up behind them, that they stopped.

"They've made contact," he had said, making Caroline and Blue Eyes turn round, finally taking their eyes away from the skies. "Everything seems fine."

"Have they found their people?" asked Caroline trying to mask the desperation in her voice. She tried to hide her love for Ford, but knew Howell could see right through her.

"Yes," replied Howell with a smile. "And they jumped away with another ship."

"They actually did a faster than light jump?"

"Looks like Ford and the others will go down in the history books."

Caroline was beaming with pride, concern and a slight pang of jealousy as she imagined what Ford was seeing right now, wondering if he was looking at one of the planets she had only been able to see through a telescope. She wished she could be with him, sharing in the incredible.

She turned her gaze towards Blue Eyes, trying to ascertain what he was thinking. The man looked lonely. Howell nodded his head towards him and walked away leaving them alone.

"You okay?" she asked staring up at him, waiting for the translation.

The man's eyes were magnetic as he looked down at her and Caroline imagined he could draw any woman in if he wanted to, but if she had learnt anything over the past few months, it was that this man was fully dedicated to, and in love with, his wife.

"I'm fine," he replied in almost a whisper.

"They made the jump. That's good right?"

"Yep," replied Blue Eyes but he still looked lost.

She figured he was missing his wife and children. "Hopefully this mission will go fine and then you'll get a chance to go home."

He didn't respond straight away, staring up at the clouds again. "I hate being left behind to wait," he said at last and Caroline could see the sadness in his face.

"Does that happen a lot?"

Blue Eyes smiled ruefully, "too many times." With his head bowed he walked slowly back towards the base.

Caroline suspect there was a lot she didn't know about their guests' long journey to Earth. She followed behind Blue Eyes until she was surrounded by the warmth of the base. He was waiting with a security detail to be escorted back to his room so she walked with them, aware that the man seemed to be eyeing her with suspicion.

"Are you still going to be watching us all the time?" he asked as they walked through a series of corridors.

"Not as much," replied Caroline.

"So what are we going to be doing here whilst we wait?"

She had to be honest that she had no idea. They had been too wrapped up in getting the ship ready to decide what to do with the guests that were left behind. "I'm not sure."

"Great," replied Blue Eyes blandly.

They were silent for the rest of the walk back and Blue Eyes had entered his room without another word to her. She had watched through the glass as he flopped down onto his bed, staring up at the ceiling before pulling something out of his pocket. It was the photograph of him, Blondie and the two toddlers. He looked at it longingly, his eyes seeming to well up, and then held it to his chest.

Turning around, Caroline walked away in shame.

_oooo_

_Battlestar Pegasus_

Ford rolled over uncomfortably on the small put-up bed making it squeak loudly. He had not been able to sleep all night, lying there listening to the soft hum of the ship. It was enough to drive anyone crazy. He could tell the others were asleep, he could hear their deep breathing and someone was badly in need of some snore aid.

He looked at his watch. It was only 0500 hours. He still had a couple more hours of boredom before the others woke up. Then they would have nothing to do except talk. This wasn't how he had envisioned his dream adventure.

With a sigh he flung his feet over the side of the cot and grabbed at his travel bag. In the dark he changed into what he hoped was matching slacks and a t-shirt. He then took one of the translators and walked to the door, opening it as quietly as possible.

There were five marines standing outside, all armed. The nearest held up his hand and shook his head at him.

Ford held out the translator machine. "They said I could take a walk with an escort," he said.

The marines looked at him with a hardened stare from under their dark helmets until the machine finished translating. Ford only noticed that the marine furthest away was female as she spoke out. "It's only 0500 hours."

"Well you five are awake and I can't sleep." His fingers were crossed down by his side, hoping that their commanding officer had told them that he was allowed to have a walk with an armed escort.

After a few moments the woman spoke out again. "This way," she said and Ford eagerly followed. He noticed that another marine followed behind them. "Where would you like to go?" she asked.

"Erm," replied Ford, which the translator obviously had difficulty translating. "I don't really know, can't I just wander about?"

The marine seemed to fall into step with him, letting him know that he was now in charge of their destination. "Just keep to the corridors," she said sternly.

The corridors were quite open, but stacked on either side were a number of crates making it seem smaller. For 0500 hours the ship was surprisingly busy, with a number of crew members wandering past, each one giving him a long stare. After a few minutes he saw two people round the corner wearing spacesuits identical to those belonging to Brunette and Legs. The man had dark hair and a helmet tucked under his arm and the woman was shorter, her hair swept tightly back.

They stopped in their tracks when they saw Ford, eyeing him with wonder before carrying on past. They were quick and the translator only partially caught their conversation. He wasn't sure it was translating correctly though as the woman seemed to bizarrely address the man as a hotdog.

"So where's the best place to go on this ship?" he asked his marine contingent as he rounded into another bland corridor. "You guys have got to unwind somewhere."

"That would be the Mess," the woman replied rather shortly. "There are two on the ship, one for the officers and the other for the enlisted."

Despite having a translator as an intermediary, Ford could still decipher the meaning behind the woman's words. She was telling him that he wasn't welcome in either.

"I am an officer you know," he said with a smile, stopping briefly. The woman stared hard at him. "I may not have fought in your war, but I have seen combat on Earth, was even a prisoner of war for a time. So, please, cut me a little slack."

He carried on walking without waiting for a response. He was completely lost, but didn't really care, anything was better than listening to loud snoring all night. The corridors started to narrow slightly and Ford imagined he must have reached either the aft or fore of the ship if it was designed in any way like a boat or submarine.

"Where are we?" he asked, suddenly hearing a soft thudding noise.

"Some facilities for the officers sir," replied the woman.

Her address didn't go unnoticed to Ford, realising that she obviously had a mutual respect for people in the military. There was a pause in the thudding and then it started again. Curiosity getting the better of him, Ford walked towards the noise, peering into a hatch which was ajar and ignoring the marine's request for him to step back.

He recognised Blondie straight away even though she was dressed in exercise clothing and was covered in sweat. It was somewhat comforting to see a familiar face that wasn't asleep and snoring. She hadn't noticed his presence as he watched, continuing to thump and kick the punch-bag that hung from the wall.

"Hey," he said loudly to catch her attention.

Blondie spun around, her body looking alert. He was about to speak again but she placed a finger quickly to her lips and then pointed down to the corner. Asleep on the floor were the two young toddlers he recognised from before, wrapped up in blankets, stirring slightly.

Blondie swiped up a towel, wiping her face. "What are you doing here?" she whispered, nodding to the marines behind him.

"Couldn't sleep," he whispered back. "It's also been a while since I've shared a bunk room."

Blondie nodded.

"Why are you awake at 0500 hours?" he added.

"The kiddies were refusing to sleep, deciding to give me hell instead."

"I'm really sorry, I had…we…" he felt the need to apologise again, the guilt digging at him.

Blondie shook her head, throwing back down the towel. "So are you going to spar with me or what?"

It took him a few moments to realise what she had asked, "sorry, what?"

She threw some knuckle protectors at him, "you're in the military, so you _must _know how to spar."

"Yeah, but not with a woman."

Blondie rolled her eyes, "you lot are so backwards." Before he'd had a chance to react, she crouched down, sweeping her leg out and connecting with the backs of his legs sending him sprawling backwards. He felt the wind knock out of his chest.

Collecting himself he looked up, seeing Blondie standing above him. She was definitely a formidable looking woman.

"Ouch, that hurt," he said bluntly.

"You obviously aren't trained very well either," she said, a large grin across her face.

"I wasn't exactly ready for that."

"You're military, you should always be ready," she held out her hand, helping him up.

He removed the translator machine from over his shoulder, placing it within earshot. He was dressed for exercise so he had no excuse, but flashes of being pushed through a glass panel played in his mind, putting him off sparring with this particular woman. He imagined she liked to fight dirty and bend all the rules.

He slipped on the protectors, "how about we take out our sleep deprivation on the punch-bag instead?"

Blondie shrugged, motioning him over. "Be my guest."

Taking a few deep breaths, Ford's attention focused on the punch-bag. He not only had his own personal pride to prove, but he also had to show that his planet wasn't full of undertrained wimps. His barrage of punches and kicks were strong and controlled, sending the punch-bag swinging. Every few minutes he paused, allowing Blondie to take over. The sweat was soon collecting on his brow.

"You sure you don't want to spar?" asked Blondie as she laid a few quick punches in quick succession.

"Sir," called out one of the marines catching their attention. He was pointing to the corner where the two children looked to be waking up. Through their sparring with the punch-bag they had forgotten to whisper.

"Crap," said Blondie, pulling off her gloves and walking towards them.

"Momma?" asked the girl sleepily. "Momma!"

"I'm here," replied Blondie crouching down in front of them. They both gripped onto their mother tightly as if they were afraid that she would disappear. "Come on kiddos let's have a shower." She took their hands and started to walk out of the gym just as they started squealing.

"Sorry," said Ford.

"Stop apologising for everything," replied Blondie sounding exasperated and then turned to the marines. "Take him back to his quarters."

Ford couldn't help but look disappointed. "Are we going to be stuck in there all day?"

"My debriefing starts in two hours, I always make them quick."

With a smile she walked out of the room, her children pulling on her hands wanting attention.

With a sigh Ford motioned to the marines, "after you."

_oooo_

When Ford returned to his shared quarters he found Biggy sat up on his bunk looking fresh as if he had slept for hours.

"Hey," said Ford as he strode in and flopped down on his bunk which nearly buckled in protest.

"Where have you been?" asked Biggy folding his arms, reminding Ford of a disgruntled wife.

"Sorry dear, I went for a walk," he replied mockingly.

"A note would've been nice, for all I know you'd been dragged away for an interrogation."

"Trust me, if they come in and try to _drag _me away, I'll be sure to make a lot of noise about it."

Biggy looked unimpressed, pausing before saying, "So they just let you wander around the ship then?"

"With an armed guard, this is a big ship."

"Excellent," said Biggy as he pushed himself up off the bunk and headed towards the hatch.

"I wouldn't fancy your chances," said Ford, stopping the man in his tracks. "Blondie ordered the marines to bring me back here. Perhaps leave it a couple of hours."

"Great, so all we get to do is sit around here and listen to Swanson snore all morning."

"Hey," came a muffled voice from the other side of the room. "I have a nasal problem."

"If you're awake," said Biggy loudly, "then why the fuck are you still snoring?"

"I'm up, I'm up." Swanson shuffled in his blankets until he was sitting up, his hair up at all angles. "Jeez, I feel like I've gone back in time to when I was at scout camp."

Biggy motioned his head towards Langley, "is he up or still sick?"

"I _was_ trying to sleep," said the fourth member of the room, who with a huff sat up.

From his uncomfortable bunk Ford sat and watched as the others idly chatted, gradually rising from their beds and one by one going through the shower. Ford had gone last, nearly screaming out when the freezing cold water hit him, the flow only lasting for about a minute. He figured the ship must be on rationed water and he had gotten the tail end. He was grouchy when he returned to the room.

"Enjoy the cold shower?" asked Biggy. "Kinda takes me back to my academy days."

"Yeah, well, I remember now that there was a reason I left active service."

By 0900 hours a crew member had arrived with breakfast. The food was terrible, nearly making them all gag. Ford remembered back to when their "guests" had first awoken and eaten. They had scoffed it down with relish. Now he knew why. Even the poor canteen food from the base was better than this crap. There was no flavour and it had a rubbery texture. He wondered how they could live like this.

The beverages were okay though and Ford was amazed that the warm drink had actually resembled their coffee. Despite their planets being so far away, there was somewhere which grew the equivalent of the coffee bean.

"Makes you wonder doesn't it?" said Swanson taking a swig from his mug.

"What?" asked Ford taking another mouthful of stodge with a grimace.

"Whether coffee beans actually originated from Earth, this is pretty much identical."

"I'll make sure to add that to the long list of questions to ask," replied Ford with a smile.

"You're very sarcastic this morning," said Biggy. "What's up?"

Ford shrugged his shoulders, "I'm bored. I want to get out of this room and start being useful. I'm shocked our guests didn't go crazy from staring at the same four walls for months."

"Well it's a good thing I brought these with me," replied Biggy pulling out a pack of cards and a bag of chips from his duffle. "Fancy a bit of Hold'em?"

Ford laughed. He hadn't thought he would get the chance to sit around and do nothing for hours. Biggy had obviously packed for every eventuality. They all circled around one of the beds and Biggy shared out the chips and dealt out the first round.

"Okay," said Biggy. "None of us have any cash, so let's make this an imaginary pot. Fifty quid buy in and twenty-five for a re-buy. Winner takes all when we get back home."

Ford felt more at home as they began to play, remembering back to his days in the army. He had lost lots of money over the years playing with his comrades, but it had been worth it. It was the way everyone always bonded together, even if it did lead to the occasional fight or argument. The difference here was the presence of coffee over beer and the lack of stogies.

_oooo_

"Raise you one hundred," said Biggy with a grin.

They had been playing for hours and the pot in front of them was full. Swanson had crashed out long ago and Langley, to give him credit, had hung on until this round until he had thrown all his chips in before the middle cards had been dealt. Now he was looking ashen and Ford could tell he had nothing. All he needed to gauge now was what was going on in Biggy's head.

The man was a mystery, his tactics changing constantly. Ford kept his face neutral as he looked at his cards. He had an ace high flush. It was a fair hand but could quite easily be beaten.

"Call," he said without emotion, throwing in his chips. His mind was so focused on the game that he didn't even care that their lunch had arrived, hearing the hatch door open.

"Not going to raise it huh?" said Biggy. He grinned and then pushed his chips forward. "All in."

Ford faltered, not sure what to do.

"He's bluffing," said a female voice from behind them making them all jump, her words quickly translated.

Ford turned around to see Blondie standing there, her arms folded in front of her chest. She was dressed in what looked to be a uniform, which he had seen a few others wearing around the ship. It was dark blue and she had a pin attached the chest, which looked like their version of a set of pilot wings. Her long hair was swept back tightly. It was the first time he had seen her look as if she belonged in the military, having only really seen her in tracksuits before.

He had been staring at her so long, almost enthralled, that he had forgotten what she had said. "Sorry, what?" he asked.

Blondie smirked. "I said, he's bluffing."

It took Ford a few moments to realise what she meant, saying "oh."

He was shocked that she had worked out that they were gambling. She looked sure of herself, a small smile on her lips. Turning back to his cards, he looked up at Biggy and then pushed in his chips. "All in, can't ignore the lady."

Biggy slapped down his cards face up with less gusto then before. He only had two pairs and by the look on his face, he already knew that he had lost. Langley quietly placed down his pair of kings and shrunk away. A small smile tugged at the side of Ford's mouth as he threw down his cards and then tipped the pile of chips towards him with glee.

He looked back at Blondie and pulled a mock salute. She shrugged her shoulders with a smile and then untwined her arms.

"You're needed," she said motioning her head and turning to the hatch.

Forgetting the high of the poker game quickly, they pushed up off their beds and scrambled towards the hatch after Blondie who led them down the corridor. Ford walked into step with her, trying to keep up as she strode quickly.

"How did you know he was bluffing?" he asked.

"Everyone has a tell," she replied.

"So I guess you have similar games where you're from, I'd like to learn them."

"Sure, if you want to lose everything you own." Ford turned his head to Blondie, seeing that she was grinning. He wondered if there was anything this woman hadn't mastered yet.

"So what's this meeting about?"

"My debriefing has finished, told you I'd keep it short."

"What did you tell them exactly?"

Blondie shrugged, "we jumped, crashed and ended up finding you. It's pretty simple."

Their conversation stopped as they entered what looked to be a small conference room. There was a large table that lined the far end of the room and then up the sides, and there was also what looked to be flags on the walls. In the middle of the room, inside the U shaped table were four chairs where they sat themselves. Straight ahead of them was the man they had seen before, who looked as if he was in charge. Blondie sat herself to his left and another woman who looked almost oriental, with long dark hair, was on his right.

Rugby gave them a small wave from his seat. Like Blondie, he too was dressed in a dark blue uniform now and looked much more military than before. There were a few others in uniform sat around, one female who Ford recognised from that morning, and there was one person sitting in a suit who looked far too young to be in a position of responsibility.

They all seemed to stare at each other for a few moments before the commanding officer turned to Blondie.

"How do these things work?" he said pointing to the translator.

"Just talk like normal and they will do the rest," replied Blondie.

"Right," said the commander, looking unsure. "On behalf of the Colonial Fleet, I wish to welcome you again to the Battlestar Pegasus."

Out of instinct Ford and Biggy rose to their feet and saluted before being motioned to sit. Swanson gave a small wave and Langley remained silent.

"I see two of you are clearly military," said the commander.

"Yes sir," said Ford, trying to sound as formal as possible. "I'm Major Ford and my comrade is Squadron Leader Colin Bigsby a pilot in the Royal Air Force. My other companions are Dr Swanson a leading scientist and Greg Langley a representative from our government."

The commander glanced at Blondie who shrugged.

He continued, "I've had a chance to speak to my two officers, and I am satisfied that my crew have been well treated and that you do not pose an imminent threat to my ship."

Ford glanced at his comrades and then turned back to the commander. "That's good to hear."

"I'm Commander Fisk and this is my acting XO Kendra Shaw." Ford could see Blondie rolling her eyes when he mentioned the woman to his left. "So what are your plans here?"

"Um," was all Ford could think of to reply at first, quickly adding "to learn and form diplomatic relations."

"When are you expected back?"

"Twenty-eight days, if that's okay with you?"

Fisk nodded his head and then appeared to think for a moment. "You'll each be assigned an officer to be your escort around the ship along with a guard. When you are not with them, you will be back in your quarters is that clear?"

They each nodded their head in understanding.

"Right," continued Fisk. "Considering you two already seem to get on," he said looking towards Ford, "you'll be paired with Major Thrace."

A muffled chortle came from Blondie, making Fisk turn to her.

"Something funny Major?" he asked sternly.

She looked to be suppressing a smirk as she replied, "the first time we met I threw him through a glass partition."

"That wasn't in your report."

Blondie shrugged, "it didn't seem important."

Fisk then turned to Ford, "care to tell me what prompted one of my officers to feel the need to push you through a glass partition?"

"Um," replied Ford, seeing that Blondie was trying not to laugh. "She slammed one of my comrade's head into a table, then knocked him out, stole his gun and escaped from the room holding someone hostage before disappearing into the base. I had the misfortune of finding her."

"Jesus," whispered Biggy next to him.

Fisk turned to Blondie, who gave him a "what?" expression in response, and then turned back to Ford. He didn't look surprised. He cleared his throat before continuing, "Well you two will get the opportunity to know each other even better."

It didn't escape Ford's notice that Blondie's shoulders slumped slightly, feeling a little offended.

Fisk then pointed at Biggy, "As you're a pilot I'm partnering you with Kat. The scientist can stay with Helo," he added, pointing at Rugby. Ford figured that the commander was using their call signs instead of their real names. "And the politician can be accompanied by our Quorum representative, Billy Keikeya." The young man, who looked far too young to be a politician, gave them a small wave.

"Any questions?" asked Fisk.

"What can we do on the ship?" asked Ford.

"Anything, just don't get in the way or blow her up," the commander replied. "We are still on active duty, I'm sure your companions will show you how to do something useful."

He stood, indicating the end of the meeting and walked out of the room followed by the oriental looking woman. The shorter pilot, Kat, walked up to Biggy and shook his hand.

"I hear you're a pilot," she said. "Want to see what a real bird looks like?"

Biggy looked like he was a dog with two tails, saying enthusiastically, "most definitely." He had a bounce in his step as he followed her, turning to Ford briefly and saying, "this place is awesome."

Rugby guided Swanson out of the room, the pair already vaguely familiar with each other. The politicians met with a firm handshake and left the room talking quietly to each other, which left Ford with Blondie. She was still sat in her chair, slouched back, her arms folded in front of her chest.

"So… I get to be shown around by you then?" said Ford with a smile.

"I wouldn't feel too honoured, I asked for the pilot," she replied unfolding her arms.

"I'm hurt," said Ford placing a hand to his chest. "So you didn't tell your commander about your little escape bid then?"

"Nope, I find it's better to leave out those details." She shrugged, "I wasn't exactly following protocol."

"I get the feeling that you rarely do."

This time Blondie grinned, "So my husband keeps reminding me."

"He didn't seem surprised about it at the time."

Blondie stood up from her chair and guided him out of the room. Once into the corridor their marine guard followed on behind.

"I'm sorry I held your girlfriend hostage," she said as they rounded a corner.

"Sorry?"

"She is your girlfriend right? I mean, people say that Lee and I were obvious, but you two…"

"Yeah, kind of," replied Ford thinking about the soft touch of Caroline's skin. "Since the night before we came here."

"Oh," said Blondie looking surprised.

Ford realised that he and Caroline were more like Blondie and Blue Eyes then he had originally thought, except thankfully Caroline held nothing akin to Blondie's volatility. He didn't know if he could handle a woman like that, and admired Blue Eyes for managing it.

He followed just behind the formidable woman, trying to keep up as she swaggered down the corridors like she owned them. He was in her element now, and one thing was certain, it was going to be an interesting 28 days.


	54. Taking Action

Chapter 53

Lee stood to attention in front of Fisk, sweat mottling his brow. He was nervous, afraid that Fisk would ignore his request, his plea, for help.

"So let me get this straight," said the Commander sitting back in his chair. "You want this ship to jump early to a place as far away as possible?"

Lee nodded his head, his hand tightly intertwined behind his back. "Yes, as close to the red line that is safe."

"And you've had this idea after talking to a priestess who told you that Major Thrace's coma was caused by the pressures of her destiny?"

Lee's face faltered slightly, knowing that it sounded incredible. "She needs to get away from here, now. If not, then…"

Fisk sighed, "Since the Colonies were destroyed I have found myself having to rely more and more upon faith." He paused before continuing, "but I can't risk the lives of the people on board this ship, too much is at stake. We will jump away, but not until the repairs have been completed in two days."

"But she could die before then!"

"And we could all die if we jump unprepared."

Lee wanted to argue but knew it would be futile, "and how far will we jump in two days?"

"The same as originally planned, any further is too risky."

He clenched his fist behind his back, anger bubbling inside of him. Logic told him that Fisk's call was right, but if it was Admiral Adama sitting in front of him then he knew the old man would not have hesitated to save Kara's life. He would be damned if he was going to let his wife just fade away. He saluted sharply and walked swiftly out of the Commander's quarters.

He didn't stop walking until he reached the family quarter's area, rapping on the hatch to the Agathon's billet.

"What the word?" asked Helo as soon as he opened the hatch.

"The word?" said Lee unhappily, "the word is no, I am therefore going anyway."

Helo stepped aside to let him through. Lena and Joseph were busy playing on the floor with Hera, far too entertained to turn around. Lee reached down and gave their heads a gentle stroke.

"And how do you plan on jumping away?" asked Helo, leaning up against the now closed hatch.

"All I need is a raptor and a distraction so I can get Kara on board," said Lee. "So I might need some help."

"That's too risky," said Sharon, who was crouched down by the children. "You could kill Starbuck if you take her away from lifestation, and without a doctor…."

Lee interrupted her, "but she could die if I do nothing."

"The only other option would be to jump the entire ship away," added Helo.

"Which could get Apollo shot for mutiny," said Sharon coming to a stand, her hands on her hips.

"Cain's not in charge anymore, so he might not shoot you," replied Helo. "But you could face the rest of your life living behind bars."

"And what if the ship comes under attack after we jump, and we're not ready," asked Sharon. "Could you live with yourself if people got killed for your cause?"

They were silent for a few moments before Lee said, "the ship's ready. I've already spoken with the Chief and others who say that the ship is more than ready to stand and fight, Fisk is just seeking perfection which we will never reach." He paced around the room, looking down at his children who were now looking back at him expectantly. "Doc says she's weakening," he said sadly. "If we stay any longer she'll die, if I jump the ship away she has her best chance, but I could die."

He sat himself on the edge of the small double bunk and cradled his head in his hands. He still hadn't shaved since Kara had fallen into her mysterious coma and his beard was starting to look thick. He had barely noticed his shabby appearance, the only reminder being when either Lena or Joseph pulled at the coarse hairs. Gradually over the days Kara's condition had weakened and doc Phillips was at a loss to explain why and still couldn't provide any explanation for her condition. He had said that if she were to continue declining at the same rate, then she may die within the next twenty-four hours.

Lee was therefore convinced that the priestess was right and he didn't think he could live with himself if his inaction allowed the death of the woman he loved. "I'm willing to take the risk," he said at last. Helo and Sharon just stared back at him, the only sound in the room coming from the children who were innocently playing.

"We'll help," said Sharon after a few minutes making Helo frown slightly.

"I can't ask you two to risk your lives for my quest," said Lee.

"Starbuck helped save our lives, if it wasn't for her we may never had gotten off Caprica, and if we had, I would have been shot for sure without her."

"Sharon…" began Helo.

"I've made up my mind," she replied pointedly. "Besides, if you want to make a long and accurate jump then you'll need my help."

Lee couldn't believe the loyalty of the two people who stood in front of him. If anyone had asked him over a year ago if he could trust a cylon, his answer would have definitely been no. "Alright, but I take all the risk. You two stay in the background so, if it comes to it, you can deny all knowledge of my plan."

"It shouldn't be difficult," said Helo. "You're the XO. All you have to do is plot in the co-ordinates on the FTL drive when Fisk isn't there. The crew and the Tylium ship will obey your orders."

"You can then personally escort me to the brig," said Lee. "I'd rather meet a pissed of Fisk when there's a barrier between us."

"We'll take the twins and place the blame of your actions on grief."

"I don't want to risk the ship," said Lee. "Pretend we're running some training drills and have as many people on the deck as possible in case we run into the cylons."

They each looked at each other in quiet contemplation before continuing to plan their next steps. If all went well, then in a few hours, as soon as Fisk went off duty at 2000 hours, they would put the plan into action.

_oooo_

After formulating the plan, Lee spent the rest of that evening continuing his constant vigil at Kara's bedside. Philips had told him that she was continuing to decline. Lee wondered what would happen if she passed on, would she be destined to come back somehow? All he knew is that she wanted a different path and death was not an option.

His neck was slightly mottled with sweat as he checked his watch. It was 2000 hours, Fisk would be going off shift now. His heart was hammering in his chest from the nerves, knowing that tonight one of them could die.

Leaning forwards, he stroked back her hair. "There's something I have to do tonight," he said softly. "And I'm sorry if it means I will never be able to see you again, but you should know that I have to do it." He leant down and kissed her brow. "I love you Kara, always have, ever since you opened that door."

He stood, buttoning up the front of his duty blues. He still looked dishevelled, but he didn't have time to smarten up his appearance. The CIC was empty apart from a skeleton crew. Earlier he had worked with Sharon to plot the best jump co-ordinates.

"What are you doing here sir?" asked Shaw from the dradis station, her face looking inquisitive.

"I've been avoiding my duties for too long," replied Lee. He had hoped Shaw would be off-shift, but she had obviously scheduled herself in for an extra shift.

"Did you put it past the Commander?"

"No," replied Lee. "But considering this is my normal shift, I didn't think I would have to."

Shaw eyed him suspiciously. "How's Major Thrace?"

Lee smiled ruefully. "No better, but no worse either," he lied.

Shaw nodded, "you can go back to her, I have everything covered here."

"That won't be necessary, you're dismissed."

"Sir…" she began but Lee cut her off.

"That's an order Captain," he replied dismissively and then turned his attention to the dradis monitor. Shaw lingered for a moment as if she was deciding whether or not to argue with him. Obviously thinking the better of it, she walked briskly out of the CIC. Lee then sent the crew member who sat in front of the FTL drive on an errand.

His way was now clear.

Picking up the comm he put himself through to the Commander of the Tylium ship who surprised to hear from the Pegasus at this hour.

"I'm transferring some new jump co-ordinates through to you," said Lee. "Get your ship ready for an immediate jump."

"I wasn't told about a jump today," replied the Commander gruffly. "Commander Fisk told me that we would be jumping in a few days."

"We have reason to believe that an attack is imminent," replied Lee, the lies coming easily to him. When he was a child he had been a terrible liar. Zak had been the opposite and managed to get away with his antics. Lee's honesty only ended in him being grounded. Now that there was such much at stake, it was easy to lie.

"Intel?" asked the Commander sceptically. "Short of the cylons jumping on top of us, I can't imagine what you mean by Intel. Where's Commander Fisk?"

"This is the XO giving you a direct order. If you want me to go and wake up the Commander after he's been on shift for twelve hours to confirm that, then I will."

"No, no, that won't be necessary. The ship is ready for anything, the jump co-ordinates are being inputted now, we'll be ready to jump when you are."

The Commander then hung up the comm. Lee stared around the CIC wondering if this would be the last time he saw this room. He had certainly not been an exemplary XO, probably even worse than a drunken Tigh. One or two crew members stared at him with curiosity as he walked over to the FTL drive and inputted the new co-ordinates, but no-one said anything, and why would they? Lee knew that the two crews all trusted him as a leader, knew that he always kept to the rules. Mutiny was more Starbuck's style.

It was all too easy. The ship was ready, all he needed to do was trigger the jump. He stared at the consol long and hard.

"Oh my Gods," shouted out someone from across the room which drew Lee's attention away. The Petty Officer was staring up at the dradis. "Sir look."

With a frown Lee looked up at the dradis monitor. Red blips that had not been there before suddenly flashed up, about three of them from what he could see. His heart racing, Lee shouted out, "set condition one throughout the fleet, now and prepare to jump."

The claxons blared around the room as he saw more numerous red blips suddenly appear on the monitor.

"Shall we launch alert fighters sir?" asked the Petty Officer. "The cylons will be on us in three minutes."

"No," said Lee quickly. "Make sure no-one goes out."

Another officer shouted out, "tylium ship is already away sir."

"No ships have launched sir," said the Petty Officer.

Lee dashed over to the FTL drive, this time not hesitating as he triggered the jump, feeling the pull hit him straight away. "Sit rep," he shouted out as soon as the jump had finished.

He saw Shaw had come running back to the CIC and was standing at the dradis monitor.

"Did the tylium ship jump successfully?" asked Lee to the Petty Officer.

"Yes sir, the tylium ship has checked in, no reports of any damage."

Lee could feel that his hands were shaking slightly. The cylons had jumped in right on top of them without sending a scout first. If it had been any other night then it would have taken them completely by surprise.

"What the frak?" said Shaw from her consol. "Sir, this wasn't the jump I plotted, this has gone much further. I don't know…this can't be right."

"Look into it Captain," said Lee, but he knew it wasn't a mistake. He gave her a set of jump co-ordinates. "Plot these into the FTL in case the cylons manage to follow us. You have the CIC."

He ignored Shaw's shouts for him to return and left the CIC, knowing that the Commander should never abandon his post just after a jump, but he needed to get to the lifestation. People were milling about everywhere having obviously reacted to the claxons, many looking as if they were now returning to their quarters.

He continued his walk to lifestation and walked up to Kara's bedside, needing to be with her. Disappointment drained through him when he saw that she was still sleeping. Reaching out he stroked back her hair. "Come on Kara, we've jumped away from the gas planet, it's safe to wake up," he said softly.

He heard the click of the comm system turn on and Shaw's voice echoed around the room. "Major Adama report to the CIC immediately, that's Major Adama to report to the CIC immediately."

Lee smiled slightly. "I have my own fate waiting for me," he said and then leant down and gave Kara a kiss on the forehead. But instead of setting off for the CIC he sat down next to Kara and took her hand. "The kiddies are still getting bigger by the day and miss you like crazy."

He ignored his name being called over the comm again. And then the claxons sounded, Shaw demanding that everyone get to battle stations immediately.

That did get Lee's attention. Reluctantly he pulled away from Kara's hand and ran out of the lifestation, instinct drawing him to the family quarters where he grabbed his flightsuit and helmet and then sprinted to the flight deck. Vipers were already launching when he reached there and others were being lined up. The crew had already been on alert so they had been ready.

"What are you doing here sir?" shouted Laird as Lee darted down the ladder to the deck.

"What I do best, flying a viper," replied Lee. "Get my bird ready."

"Yes sir," said Laird enthusiastically and then barked out some orders to some deckhands.

Zipping up his flightsuit, Lee was ready for a fight.

_oooo_

On the periphery of her mind, Kara could hear alarms blaring. For what seemed like forever she had lain here in the light, which gradually had darkened making her feel weak and alone. The only thing that kept her gripping tightly onto life was the sound of Lee's voice. He had told her he was going to do something and might have to leave her. She didn't know if she could hold on without his strength.

And then the alarms had sounded and the pressures around her eased slightly. And then the alarms had sounded again.

She jolted awake, nearly sitting bolt upright. For a few moments she sat confused, holding her head in her hands and then looked around. She was in a bed in lifestation with tubes sticking out of her.

"Frak," she said to herself.

How could the same crap happen to the same person twice she wondered and then pulled the IV out of her hand, wincing slightly at the pain. She made a point of looking down at her belly, relieved to see that history wasn't completely repeating itself again. It was also a relief not to have to pull a tube from her throat this time.

Also, unlike last time, she didn't feel disorientated or weak, quite the opposite. She felt more alive than ever, realising now that the alarms were not in her mind, but telling her the cylons were attacking. There was no-one shouting out "actions stations" so she was already late to the dance.

Kara started pulling out the various tubes that had been attached to her body, noticing the catheter last.

"Frakking sadist doctors," she muttered, holding her breath as she pulled it out and then swung her legs straight over the side of the bed. It was as if she had gotten the best night's sleep in her life and it felt as if a huge burden had been lifted from her shoulders.

Philips came out of his office as she walked across lifestation, looking flabbergasted. "Major!"

"I'm fine doc," replied Kara, continuing to walk out of the room.

"Like frak you are, get back to your bed so I can check you over." She didn't stop. "If I have to, I'll get the guards to force you back in."

"I'd like to see them try."

Kara threw open the doors to the lifestation. The claxons were still sounding around the ship and she wondered how long it had been since the cylons attacked. They should still be at the gas planet, so why wasn't the ship ready to jump away?

Energy flowed through her body and she ran down the corridor to her quarters, grabbing her flightsuit and helmet. She saw that Lee's were already gone. He must be out there already. She pulled on the flightsuit quickly, zipping it up over her lifestation smock and then pulled her hair into a ponytail.

Within minutes she was on the hangar deck.

"Get me my bird Chief," she yelled.

Laird looked even more shocked to see her than Philips, standing and staring at her. Everyone else seemed to have stopped to look at her too.

"Quit staring and get me my frakking bird Chief," she yelled again. "I'm not a frakking ghost."

"Perhaps you should go back to lifestation sir," he said after signalling to a deckhand.

"What's happening out there, why haven't we jumped?"

"The FTL needs to be spooled up again and the Tylium ship is having difficulties sir."

"Then get me the frak out there Chief or I'll push my viper to the launch tubes myself."

The deckhands finally started to tow her viper across the deck, which was practically empty of ships. The Pegasus has launched everything at the cylons and she could hear the sound of the ship's firing solution.

"Frak," she muttered to herself, all too aware that people were staring at her. "Come on!" she shouted.

Finally she was sitting inside the confines of her cockpit and was being towed into a launch tube. Laird was in the launch control room and she gave him a thumb's up.

"Apollo's out their flying solo sir," he said. "Good hunting Major."

Kara loved the sensation of the g-forces as her viper launched out. Outside the ship, the scene was chaotic. Vipers were flying everywhere amidst numerous raiders and there was a baseship looming close-by, nearly in firing distance.

Kara directed her viper straight into the middle of the action, keeping her eyes peeled for Lee who was flying without a wingman.

Over her comm she heard Shaw's voice, identifying her viper and then saying, "you have made an unscheduled launch, please identify yourself pilot."

"Pegasus this is Starbuck, feeling good and ready to kill some toasters."

She ignored what Shaw said next as she took out the nearest raider without blinking and then spun her viper to take out another. And then she saw Lee ahead of her. He was chasing down one raider but another was suddenly joining in the chase behind her.

"Frak!" she heard him shout. "I have a toaster on my tail."

Without a wingman there was no-one to protect his ass. Kara didn't flinch as she pushed her viper hard at the raider, not pausing as she blasted it away, the wreckage bouncing gently off the hull of her viper, a few large drops of blood splattering over the cockpit canopy. Lee then took out the raider he was chasing.

"Thanks," he said over the comm. "Thought that one had me."

Kara smiled widely, "you're welcome."

There was a momentary pause and then Lee said, "Kara?"

"The one and only," she replied with a grin, thrusting her viper over so that she was now in formation with him. Lee twisted slightly in his cockpit, the shock evident on his face and what looked like a dishevelled beard. "Keep your eyes ahead Apollo, we'll talk about it later. I've got your six."

In perfect formation they pushed ahead, directing their fire at the nearest raider that didn't stand a chance. Their vipers danced with each other as they blasted away three more in quick sucession. The baseship was nearing quickly and the firing solutions of both large ships were now focused on each other.

Racetrack's voice sounded over the comm, "Going in to launch missiles, I need cover to draw away the baseship's firing solution."

"Racetrack, Apollo," said Lee as he glanced over with a grin towards Kara. "Copy that, creating a diversion."

They pushed their vipers over, heading towards the raiders that had just launched from the baseship, close to the firing solution.

"We're gonna have to be quick," said Lee. "You ready for it?"

"I could ask you the same question Lee, when was the last time you were out here?" replied Kara with a chortle. "Just don't stop moving."

"Yes sir," replied Lee with a laugh.

Four other vipers were also following in their wake, punching forward hard towards the twelve raiders that had no idea what was about to hit them. They powered through, guns blaring. Blood and metal flew apart, washing over their vipers as they continued in their assault.

As expected, the baseship drew away some of its firepower from the Pegasus to focus upon them as they decimated the line of raiders.

As he dodged and weaved quickly, starting to retreat, Lee shouted out, "now Racetrack, now!"

"Missiles away," replied Racetrack. "Pulling back now."

"I've launched everything I have," added in Sharon. "Also pulling back."

"Apollo to all vipers, let's get out of here. All vipers draw back from the baseship," said Lee.

"Copy that," said Kara, pushing her viper towards home. She wove and dived, taking out a raider that crossed her path with a loud whoop. From behind her she could see a bright flash and then numerous cheers sounding over her comm.

Flipping her viper over she saw the beautiful sight as the baseship began to break apart. The Pegasus continued to fire until it was decimated. The few remaining raiders, pulled away and then disappeared in a flash. They had won.

"This is Pegasus to all pilots," said Fisk. "Come on home." His voice was commanding but carried a hint of jubilation.

"You heard the Commander everyone," said Lee, looking over towards Kara. "Head on home, there's some well-deserved ambrosia waiting for us."

"Looks like you got beaten up pretty bad," said Kara on a private comm line as she looked at Lee's viper. There were scorch marks marring the underside of the chassis.

"I was flying solo for a while."

"Never again Lee, I promise," replied Kara, holding up her hand to the cockpit in a vain attempt at reaching out towards him.

"I might not be able to fly again after this," replied Lee, as he too touched the side of the cockpit.

"Why's that?"

"Let's just say you're a bad influence on me and save the explanation for later."

They were the last two still out with the stars as they angled their vipers to the deck, coming in for a combat landing. Their undercarriage bumped down hard until they came to a standstill.

"Pegasus this is Apollo, everyone is on deck, no-one is behind me," said Lee.

Kara leant her head back against the seat as she felt the pull of the FTL drive kicking in. As she decompressed, her head felt even clearer and she breathed a sigh of relief.

_oooo_

Kara smirked as her viper was towed onto the deck, seeing doc Philips standing in wait for her, his arms folded in front of his chest. He didn't look happy. She knew she was in trouble, but didn't really care.

Blood was splattered all over her viper, all the way from the nose and up to the tail. It had been an intense fight and the adrenalin was still pumping through her body. Various crew members stared at her as she pushed back the cockpit canopy and removed her helmet, followed by a few cheers.

She heard the roar of Helo as she stepped over the cockpit onto the small ladder. He lifted her up, carrying her down the remaining steps.

"It's so frakking good to see you Starbuck," he said. "I was sceptical of Apollo's plan, but…"

"What plan?" asked Kara, but she was too elated to press the subject further. With the advantage of being held above Helo's tall shoulders, she could see across the deck. Lee was jumping down his ladder and moving quickly towards her. She wriggled in Helo's arms until he let her go and then weaved through the elated crowd towards Lee.

They fell into each other's arms with a deep embrace, Kara nestling her head upon Lee's shoulder until the presence of doc Philips pulled her away.

"I told you I'm fine," she said but Philips didn't budge. Turning back to Lee she said, "Looks like I'm being dragged away."

Lee gave her a kiss. "You need to get yourself checked out Kara."

"Why is everyone overreacting?" she replied with a shrug. "All I did was collapse from that headache, it's gone now."

Lee glanced at Philips and then back at her. "You were in a coma for over a week Kara."

She hadn't realised she'd been unconscious for so long. "Oh, well, I'll just follow the doc's orders then," she said with a smile.

Lee shook his head in apparent disbelief of his wife's nonchalance. "I'll follow with the kiddies, they miss you."

Kara leant in and gave him a soft a kiss and then walked away with Philips. She had a swagger in her step as she walked through the cheering crowds, still celebrating their victory. She smiled wickedly and turned back to Lee shouting out, "loose the beard!"

She then carried on walking towards lifestation, ignoring Philip's disapproving stare.

_oooo_

Lee stood outside Fisk's quarters taking a deep breath, bracing himself for a difficult meeting. Despite his trepidation, he was still buzzing from the battle and seeing Kara again. Lena and Joseph had been excited that their mother was "feeling better," as he had put it, but he hadn't had a chance to take them to her yet. He was just shaving off his beard when he heard his name being called over the comm, ordering him to report to Commander Fisk's quarters.

He took another deep breath and then knocked on the hatch, entering when he heard Fisk's voice. The man did not look too happy as he sat behind his desk, but on the plus side, he didn't have a military contingent with him. Lee saluted sharply and stood to attention.

"Sit," said Fisk pointing to the chair in front of his desk. Lee sat down quickly.

"You asked to see me sir?"

"I'm puzzled about something Major, perhaps you could help me make sense of it." Fisk was now staring at him. "I was going to congratulate you for your prompt actions when the cylons came, but then Shaw informed me that we didn't jump to the co-ordinates she had inputted that morning, in fact we jumped a lot further…"

"Sir, I…" began Lee but Fisk held up his hand to cut him off.

"Then I spoke to the Commander of our Tylium ship and he informs me that you gave new co-ordinates to him _before _the cylons came along."

"Sir I can explain…"

"Then I think back to a conversation we had this morning, about a certain Major who was lying in a coma until a few hours ago. You can appreciate that I am starting to look upon this with suspicion." Fisk's tone of voice told Lee that he already knew what he had done. "And coincidentally a training op was in progress on the deck, so virtually all of our pilots were in flightsuits and on the deck. I appreciate that you went to the trouble of trying to ensure the safety of this ship."

"This was all me sir, I take full responsibility."

Fisk nodded, "not that I believe you, Helo was far too quick to provide an explanation, but I will accept your admission of guilt and not look further at any other people." He paused before speaking again, "You could have endangered this entire ship."

Lee suddenly felt a pang of guilt, "I'm sorry sir, but I had to do something."

"What you did was tantamount to mutiny, if Cain was here she would've already had you shot! You abused the position that I had entrusted you with."

"I'm sorry sir, and I'm willing to face any punishment you deem necessary."

Fisk sighed, "This is why the military banned relationships amongst ranks. They cause people to make irrational decisions. You have put me in a difficult position. On the one hand you have committed a heinous criminal offence, which would normally mean expulsion from the Colonial Fleet and lengthy imprisonment. On the other hand, we are now living in different times. We're out here alone with no reprieve, so I can't just throw you off my ship and we only have a small brig. Further, if I lose an officer, everyone suffers. I also have to accept that on some level you were right, we were sitting ducks out there and if we hadn't of been ready, we may have lost many lives in the attack. Then again, you were also wrong. When we jumped, we were also attacked, even if it was only by one baseship. You are very fortunate that we only lost three vipers, with all pilots managing to punch out in time."

"So what are you going to do?" asked Lee, and now he was nervous.

"For now the moral on the ship is at its highest and I don't want to spoil that. Having you shot or thrown in the brig will only give me one very pissed off Starbuck and would lower the moral over the entire ship. Not to mention that I would have to face your father when we get back." Fisk leant back in his chair. "You've shown that you cannot be trusted in a position of responsibility on this ship and for that I'm busting you back down to pilot status, Starbuck too for that crazy stunt she pulled earlier and ignoring Doctor Philips orders. If anyone asks, you're both back to pilot status for launching your vipers without permission. Now get out of my sight."

Lee didn't need asking twice, he quickly stood up, saluted sharply and then walked out of the room. He paused for breath outside and sighed with relief. He then set off towards lifestation without any feelings of regret for his actions.


	55. Destiny part 1

**I've only watched season four once, quite a while ago now, (for obvious reasons) so most of the rest of the story only follows bits of cannon that I can remember. (Though only the good bits :D) Again, thank you for all the reviews they mean so much, sorry if I haven't responded to all of them.**

Chapter 54

Lee and Kara felt as if they were the naughty kids in class as they sat together at the back of the Ready room. The front was full like normal with Kat sat right in the middle, listening intently. Kara slouched into her chair, her knee resting up on the bench in front of her. Lee at least looked like he was half listening to the debriefing.

Stinger was a good pilot and leader, but he lacked panache as the CAG. Kara couldn't help the yawn that escaped her lips as he droned on about their next mission.

"Am I boring you Major?" he asked from the front. Kara could feel Lee's eyes glance at her.

"No sir," she replied, trying to suppress a grin. It had been a long time since she had been reprimanded in the Ready room by the CAG.

Lee leant in towards her slightly, whispering, "sorry for keeping you up last night."

This time Kara did grin, whispering back, "_you_ can wake me up like that anytime."

They both giggled, which earned them a stare from Stinger. "Care to share the joke with the rest of the room?" he asked, glaring up at them.

"No sir," they said in unison and the CAG carried on.

Kara whispered to Lee, "thought he was about to put us in detention."

Lee smiled at his wife, taking her hand discreetly under the bench in front. He had been too wrapped up in her to hear Stinger asking him a question, earning him a nudge from Kara's elbow. "Sorry, what?" he said and then realised that the entire room was looking over at him. "Sir," he said sitting to attention.

"Obviously you've forgotten normal protocol whilst you were in charge of the ship," said Stinger with a sneer that reminded Lee of when he had first come aboard the ship.

"No sir," replied Lee, feeling Kara smirking next to him.

"As you were not listening, you've personally volunteered yourself for the landing party."

"Thank you sir."

Stinger then dismissed the room. Kara and Lee walked out together, the former holding back a guffaw until they were a few metres from the exits. "Aww Lee, you're the worst at talking yourself out of trouble."

"I haven't has as much practice as some people," replied Lee, glancing at her quickly.

"Mm? It was easy when you were in charge." She was grinning wickedly in her way that made Lee go weak at the knees.

"I was a soft touch, and it helped that you always sat right within my eyeshot."

"Liked that huh?"

"It was torturous," said Lee, at which point Kara grabbed his arm, pulling him into side corridor and into a storage room.

"Really?" she said after placing a firm kiss to his lips as soon as the hatch door closed.

"Excruciating," replied Lee and pulled the zipper down on her flightsuit, pulling the top half down. Their kisses were passionate as they pushed back up against some boxes. Kara pulled down Lee's flightsuit off his arms, as he pushed hers over the curve of her hips. The feel of the boxes was rough as he lifted her slightly on top of them and then released himself from the confines of his suit. Scooping Kara towards him, he entered her swiftly making them both moan with ecstasy. Their rhythm was fast and erratic as they led each other towards climax.

Kara panted as she came down from her high. "We haven't done this in a while," she said with a grin, motioning to the dark cupboard.

"Bonus of having fewer responsibilities," replied Lee, placing a kiss to Kara's lips.

"You okay with that?" asked Kara. She didn't really care that she was not acting as the CAG for a while, having never really wanted the responsibility in the first place. The attack against the Tylium mine years ago, when she had a busted knee, taught her that. But she was aware that Lee had always strived to reach the top.

Lee shrugged as he zipped his flightsuit back up, "yeah I guess, haven't really thought about it to be honest, I've enjoyed flying with you again."

Kara zipped up her own flightsuit, "hopefully it will only be temporary."

Lee scrunched up his face, "I made a completely unauthorised FTL jump Kara, somehow I don't think Fisk will be that forgiving."

"Well my status is only temporary until I can prove I'm not crazy."

"So never then?" replied Lee playfully.

"Hey," said Kara feigning offence. She looked at her watch briefly. "We've got three hours until this mission, are you ready?"

Lee gave her an uncertain smile, "it's been meticulously planned…"

"…But not by you or me," finished Kara, she patted his arm. "You'll do good, you have a good team. Just remember not to screw up or Sharon will kill your ass for losing her husband."

"Thanks for the encouragement."

Kara grinned playfully, "I'll come and rescue you if you get stuck, don't worry." Lee looked serious for a moment, "what's wrong?"

"I dunno," replied Lee with a frown. "A cylon base, all the way out here? It doesn't seem right and I refuse to believe that it's unarmed and undefended."

"All recon missions with the Blackbird have shown there's no-one's around, relax, it'll be fine. If Sharon's right and it really is their major resurrection hub, then destroying it would finally put us on an even playing field."

Lee took his wife's hand into his, stroking his thumb over her upper palm. "I love you Kara," he said softly.

Not caring that they were in the corridor, Kara leaned in and gave him a long, firm kiss to the lips, their brows softly touching. "I love you too, now go get 'em."

Reluctantly Lee let go of her hand and walked off down the corridor towards the deck, leaving Kara, who watched, a look of concern washing over her. She felt her stomach drop, fearing that she wouldn't get to see him again.

_oooo_

_Lifestation_ – _four months earlier_

Kara tried to remain stoic as Philips plunged another needle into her arm. In the past twenty-four hours he had taken so many blood samples that she was starting to feel like a pin cushion. He had not gotten around to telling her any of the results yet, which was starting to make her feel edgy.

When he had finished extracting this sample he placed a pad on the new wound and Kara closed her arm, pinning it in place. "Is this all really necessary doc?" she asked. "I'm fine." It was not the first time she had asked this question in the past day.

"You're not fine," replied Philips gruffly, in a voice that nearly imitated Cottle's infamous growl. "People don't just wake up from comas with the energy of ten men Major. It's a freak of nature that has to be explored."

Kara stared at the man, saying in a hard voice "thanks," and then muttering "Kara Thrace, freak of nature extraordinaire."

"I also need to work out why you fell into that coma in the first place, and merely stating _destiny _on your medical records is not going to cut it."

Kara rolled her eyes, regretting the action soon afterwards as she was feeling slightly woozy from the loss of more blood. "Whatever doc, just hurry up with your tests, I have toasters to cook, kids to see and a husband to frak."

"Not until I've had a look inside that head of yours," replied Philips.

Kara shook away a sudden memory of her mother, telling her that she was stupid and there was nothing in her head. For some reason she had dreamt about _her_ a lot in the past few weeks, rehashing the painful memories of being unwanted and unloved. Philips turned away from her so she hopped off the lifestation bed and started to make her way out.

"Not so fast Major," said the good doctor. "I'm not finished yet. Until I'm fully satisfied that you're fit for duty, you will be staying here."

"No way," replied Kara and continued. "I've had enough of doctors."

"Just so you know Major," he added as she neared the exit. "I have two armed marines standing outside with strict orders not to let you out."

Kara sighed, it was useless to try and argue with the man. Doctors had always been like that, even when she was a child. After telling them over and over again that her broken fingers had been caused in an accident, they still insisted on interrogating her. "Fine," she said forcefully and walked back over and sat down on the bed.

"Not here, I need to take a scan."

She thought about arguing, but then slipped off the bed and followed the doctor without complaint. It was infuriating that only twenty-four hours ago she had been full of so much energy, doing what she did best. Now she was being treated like a medical experiment. This was only wasting time, she had to get out and help with the search for Earth. She couldn't explain it, but something inside her head told her that she knew way.

The scanner made her feel claustrophobic and seemed to take forever as it took images of her brain. After what seemed like an eternity inside she started to fidget, nudging her shoulder in a vain bid for freedom.

"Keep still!" shouted out Philips from his work station.

"Frakking doctors," muttered Kara under her breath refraining from wriggling and continuing to stare upwards. Philips could at least have put a picture up in here or play some damned music she thought. "How much longer?" she called out, but didn't get a response.

Lee's voice then reached her ears, making her relax slightly. "Is everything okay doc?" he asked.

"Everything will be fine," replied Philips, adding "_if your wife manages to keep still for a few minutes!_"

Kara kept as still as she could, wanting to get out of the machine and see Lee again. Finally when she was released, she could see him, standing there with that slightly disapproving smile he had always saved just for her. He held out his hand and helped her sit up, not that she needed the assistance, and then pulled her into a hug.

"Hey," he said into her ear. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I'm about to start glowing," she replied, squeezing him close.

"The doc just needs to make sure you're okay."

Kara pulled away from him and looked deeply into his eyes, "I'm fine. I feel fine, I look fine, I am fine, end of story. This is just a waste time."

"Kara…"

"Something amazing happened Lee."

"What, Kara?" asked Lee anxiously.

"I've been waiting for this moment all my life and I think it's finally happened."

"You're destiny?" asked Lee. Kara smiled at him, happy that he was pushing his usual sceptical persona aside. He seemed to sense what she was thinking, "After everything that I've seen, and speaking to that priestess again, I'm much more of a believer now." Their conversation was interrupted by Philips who coughed discretely to catch their attention.

"So what's wrong with my brain doc?" asked Kara. "Too many g-forces and retina detaching moves finally knocked my senses out?"

Philips looked at her disapprovingly, "I hardly find this situation something to joke about."

Kara rolled her eyes, "fine, _please _tell me what's wrong with me."

"Nothing as far as I can tell," he replied. "My previous tests found nothing wrong and confirmed you are not a cylon."

"Well that's good to know," said Kara flippantly.

Lee, however, looked annoyed, "is that why you posted guards outside, because you thought my wife is a cylon?"

Philips was unaffected by his irritation, "actually Major, they were placed there because your wife keeps trying to abscond. I have never suspected her to be a cylon. I was ordered to do the test by Commander Fisk."

"Frakker," muttered Lee and then asked, "so there's nothing wrong?"

Philips flipped through his notes and then glanced up at Kara. "The tests show that you are slightly anaemic, but nothing to cause alarm, it's a common affliction of being placed on rationed food." He flipped another page over and smiled, "I can confirm you're not pregnant."

"Frak doc," said Kara. "Is there anything you didn't test for? I've had my shots, there was no chance I could be."

"Many of the shots have been replaced with placebo injections, President's orders," replied Philips with a smile.

"Frakking Baltar," replied Kara and then hopped off the bed. "Seen as you've taken over a day just to work out I'm not a toaster and not about to pop out another kid, can I go now?"

Philips shook his head, "I'm afraid not, you'll have to wait until the rest of the tests come back."

"Motherfrakker," voiced Kara to no-one in particular and sat back on the bed.

"Commander Fisk has also suggested that you speak to someone about your experience."

"Uh-uh, no way doc. My last therapist tried to kill me."

"I find it hard to imagine that there are few people who haven't wanted to kill you," said Philips as he wrote another note in his chart.

Kara stared at him hard until he got the hint and walked away. "Frakking doctors."

Lee placed a kiss to Kara's brow, "just give it a few more hours and you'll be outta here."

Kara wasn't quite so optimistic, having told herself that lie about twenty hours ago. "Haven't you got a ship to run?" she asked. "Or has Fisk decided to go soft on you?"

"Neither," replied Lee. "Fisk busted me down to squadron leader, and that was him being generous."

Kara remembered that Helo had mentioned something about a plan, "what did you do?"

Lee shrugged his shoulders, "you were going to die if we stayed by that gas cloud, Fisk wouldn't allow the fleet to jump so I did anyway."

"Wow Lee, that's impressive, not even _I've_ pushed the boundaries that far," despite her words she didn't sound that impressed. "It was completely insane, what if Fisk had you shot? What would Lena and Joseph have done then?"

"You were about to die Kara, I couldn't let that happen without trying everything first. I don't think I could have looked them in the eyes again if I hadn't tried."

Tears welled in Kara's eyes, she leant up and placed a kiss to his lips. "Thank you for saving my life." She sat back on the lifestation bed, putting her feet up.

"Are you going to start co-operating now?"

"Considering you went all out to save my ass, it would best to make sure everything really is okay. Besides, it keeps me away from catching up with paperwork."

"Actually you've also been bumped down to squadron leader, so you can forget about the paperwork." said Lee.

"Nice," replied Kara and settled her back into the pillows, trying to get comfortable. "Remind me to thank Fisk later will you."

Lee laughed, he placed a kiss to Kara's head and then left the lifestation, fully satisfied that his wife was back and hadn't changed a bit.

_oooo_

Lena and Joseph were growing up so fast Lee was finding it difficult to keep up with them. Lena squirmed as he tried to get a comb through her ever thickening hair. In the past he could never have imagined being with his two children, tying up his daughter's hair into little bunches.

"Dada, dada, dada," she said over and over with delight. Lee still beamed with pride every time she spoke.

Joseph toddled over and handed Lee a toy for no particular reason and toddled away again, lost in his own innocent happiness.

"Aa aa?" asked Lena, which Lee took to be her attempt at saying mama.

"You're momma will be here any minute, the doctor's finished making her feel better now."

The kiddies squealed happily as they heard the hatch door open, toddling towards Kara as she stepped in the room. She crouched down a scooped them into her arms, sitting down on with them on the floor. "Hey there," she said. "I missed you both."

"Aa aa," said Lena.

"Sta," said Joseph.

"Nearly kiddos, how bout saying momma?" asked Kara as she cuddled her children.

"Maaaa," attempted Joseph, as he half chewed on a finger.

"Aaa, dada," said Lena with a smile and pointing at Lee.

"Sure kiddo, why not," shrugged Kara jokingly. "I mean, all I did was carry you around for 9 months, gave birth to you, look after you when you screamed all night." Lena just grinned up at her mother, making Kara's heart melt. She leant down and placed a kiss to her head and then did the same to Joseph. She smiled at Lee's attempt to put Lena's hair up, noticing that the bunches were wonky. "How have they been when I was asleep?" she asked Lee, who looked suddenly guilty.

"Helo and Sharon looked after them a lot, I…I couldn't leave your side."

"Lee…" Kara began, instead she got up off the floor lifting Lena and Joseph up with her and walked over to him. She placed a soft kiss to Lee's lips. "Thank again for saving my life," she whispered and then smiled.

"I figured I owed you one from all the times you saved my ass."

"Aaaase," said Joseph making Lee grimace slightly.

Kara rolled her eyes, "and you thought it would be me who teaches them all the curse words." She bounced the twins on her hip and then sat them in their highchairs at the small dining table.

"So did the doctor find anything?" asked Lee as he picked up some toys from the floor.

"Considering he ran every single test possible, not much," replied Kara sitting at the table. "Apart from being anaemic, having a low potassium level, vitamin deficiency, a cyst on one ovary and needing a filling in one of my teeth, everything's fine."

"But nothing to explain the coma?"

"Nope, I'm pretty much suffering from the same problems as everyone else on the ship."

"Has he cleared you for duty?"

Kara shrugged, "yep, apart from being, as he quotes "certifiable," he can't see any reason why not."

Lee left the quarters for a few minutes, bringing back with him some mush in two bowls for the twins and mush on two plates for him and Kara. Together they fed Lena and Joseph, getting them ready for day care. They had nearly finished when Kara's name was called over the comm, ordering her to report to Commander Fisk's office immediately. With a sigh she left their quarters and walked through the ship.

When she entered his office, Fisk was sat behind his desk and motioned for her to sit. "Welcome back," he said cordially.

"Thank you sir," replied Kara and took a seat.

"I've looked at the doctor's notes, nothing but the same problems as the rest of us."

Kara imagined that Fisk probably also had an elevated heart rate, high blood pressure and a damaged liver, but she chose not to voice that opinion. "Yes sir, am I cleared for duty?"

"I assume Major Adama has informed you of the new hierarchy?"

"Yes sir."

Fisk nodded, "Stinger has been promoted to Major and will take over as the CAG."

"Good choice sir," lied Kara, she would have chosen Showboat.

"Shaw will temporarily take over as the XO."

Kara nearly winced at that choice, again choosing not to voice her opinion, she was in enough trouble already. "So am I cleared for duty, sir?"

"I still have concerns. You woke up from an unexplained coma and then went out gallivanting in your viper. From my point view that's insane."

Kara shrugged, "I still kicked ass out there though…sir."

Fisk raised an eyebrow at her, "we shouldn't have been there at all, we should have still been orbiting the gas planet."

"Well from what I understand, _sir_, is that if we stayed there, we'd probably all be dust right now."

Fisk muttered under his breath and then moved on. "Your husband kept telling me that he believed your coma was caused by the pressure of some destiny. Excuse me if I find that hard to believe."

"You think it's easy for me to believe? I've had this _thing _following me my entire life, but finally it's started to get clearer."

"What is?"

"I'm not sure, but my instincts are telling me that we have to go a certain way to find Earth."

Fisk leant back in his chair, pressing his fingers to the side of his temples and rubbing small circles. He was clearly having difficulty with the entire concept. He made a small moaning noise, "why can't you people do things the easy and clearly logical way?"

Kara shrugged, "sometimes you've got to have faith."

"Well I don't have any of that, what I do have is a ship to run and hundreds of lives to protect."

"We're also searching for our salvation," Kara reminded him. "That is the point of this whole mission, to find Earth."

"Well I didn't sign up for a mission where we would be directed by one pilot's gut feeling, and I'm sure not many others did either."

"Do we even have a direction to go in yet sir?"

Fisk seemed about to speak and then closed his mouth again, glancing across the room momentarily where a large pile of star charts were strewn about. "We were heading for the nebula," he said at last but not very convincingly.

Kara nodded, "good place to start, and then what? That was the only marker we saw from Kobol, what if there isn't another one when we reach there?"

Fisk rubbed at his temples again. "I swear the Adama family is going to be the death of me," he said.

Kara smacked her lips together, "so can I return to duty or what…sir?"

"Don't push it Major," warned Fisk. "Emergency viper duties for now, the rest of the time you can look through these star charts and see if you can plot us a path to Earth, like you claim you can."

_Frak_, thought Kara. "Thank you sir."

"Perhaps when you can prove to me that you're not completely nuts, I'll put you back on active duty."

Kara stood up from her chair and saluted sharply before being dismissed. Once she had exited the room she felt like screaming out, but seeing Lee waiting for her outside made her change her mind.

"Did you get your ass kicked?" he asked walking into step with her.

"I have to prove that I'm sane before he'll put me back on active duty."

"Frak, that's going to be difficult, you've been crazy since the first day I met you." Kara jabbed him in the ribs playfully with her elbow.

She looked at him and a pang of desire overcame her, "are the kiddies in day care?"

"Yep," replied Lee.

"When are you on duty?"

Lee looked at his watch, "in an hour."

"Good," said Kara and then grabbed his wrist, pulling him down the corridor that led to their quarters.

Once inside their actions were swift, pulling open their clothing leaving them in a messy pile upon the floor, and then falling back onto the bed. Their movements had to be quick and precise, almost like a perfect viper manoeuvre, to arouse as much pleasure as they could in the limited time that they had. Afterwards they lay spent in the rumpled and damp bedsheets, curled in each-other's arms.

_oooo_

Kara threw her pen across the consol in the CIC making two petty officers turn in her direction. It wasn't just them who had stared at her, everyone on the ship seemed to look at her every time she walked into their vicinity. The look in their eyes told her that they thought she was an abnormality. Normally she would just brush off such looks and gossip with a brusque "what?" like she had done most of her life, but this time she did feel subconscious. The only other time she had felt like this was when she was pregnant, but now they seemed to eye her with some suspicion rather than pity.

She had only been confined to "map searching" duties for two days and already she was completely frustrated and fed up.

"It helps if you hold on to the pen if you want to write with it," quipped Helo as he walked over to her. He leant down and picked up the pen.

"What are you doing here?" asked Kara.

"Came to see how you're doing."

"Fantastic."

Helo held out the pen until Kara snatched it back and then placed it on the table in front of her. "You're not going to get anywhere if you don't try."

"I can't just plot a course on a frakking map," exclaimed Kara.

"Well you're gonna have to try Kara, because people are going to have difficulty believing it otherwise."

"I never asked for this. All I want to do is fly my frakking viper."

Helo looked at her sympathetically and then picked up the pen, holding it out for her. Kara looked at it for a moment before taking it from him. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't see anything familiar on the star charts except the nebula, although something in her head told her that they were headed in the right direction.

"I can't explain how I know where to go," she said.

"What does your gut tell you?"

"It's not my gut, it's my head," replied Kara holding her hand to her head and rubbing her temple. "Somehow it feels right that we're going this way." She then began to laugh, making Shaw glare at her from the dradis consol.

"What's so funny?" asked Helo.

"Kara Thrace and her special destiny, sounds like a bad cover band," she laughed again. "A destiny so special that not even she can work out how to complete it." She looked up at Helo who was smiling. "If you don't believe me after all the crazy stuff you've seen me do, then no-one else but Lee will."

"My child is half cylon, Starbuck, something like that kind of makes you believe in the incredible."

Kara nodded and then looked back down at the star chart, nothing screamed out to her and it was as frustrating as hell. She closed her eyes tightly for a moment, trying to think. Flashes of a nebula came to her mind, a viper coming through the clouds joined by another, and then she zoomed away until they were nothing but specks. Images of space and stars flew past her vision and then a large planet was there, areas of green land surrounded by vast oceans. She opened her eyes quickly, realising that she was leaning against the consol.

"Are you okay?" asked Helo concerned. "You seemed to zone out for a while there."

Kara looked up at him. "I'm fine," she said and pulled a star chart towards her. The right path was out there somewhere, she just had to find it.

Tbc…


	56. A Glimpse of the Future Part Ten

Chapter 55

Ford paced around the makeshift quarters with nervous energy. He was exhausted from the lack of sleep, caused jointly by the uncomfortable bed and Swanson's continued snoring. He was well aware from looking in the mirror that his eyes were red with dark lines underneath. Now he was just waiting for Blondie to come so he could start his day.

At about 0700 hours the young politician had come for Langley and they had gone off together. Half an hour later Rugby had collected Swanson. Now it was 0800 hours and Ford and Biggy were the only ones left.

"You'll wear a hole into the floor," said Biggy as Ford continued to pace up and down.

"Can't help it, I need to get out of here," replied Ford as he rubbed his hands together and then made a few little jumps.

"Kat promised me she'd show me her bird today."

"Lucky you," said Ford with a pang of jealousy. "Blondie didn't think to tell me what _we're_ doing."

"Wanna swap? I kinda like the blonde, she's seems more spunky."

"Well if it makes you feel better, she requested you. Unfortunately none of you got your choice."

"Shame, Blondie seems like a riot."

"Not when she's pushing you through a window she's not," replied Ford with a slightly pained smile.

Biggy smirked, "I would've loved to have seen that."

The sound of the hatch opening halted their conversation. Ford recognised the small pilot from the day before, she motioned towards Biggy who leapt enthusiastically to standing.

"Seeya later mate," he said and then walked out of the hatch leaving Ford alone.

Suddenly the hum of the ship seemed deafening as he sat himself down on his bunk to wait. Looking around he studied the angles of the walls, the pipes and vents. It didn't look that futuristic, more like a giant submarine, and the principle was the same, only with the vacuum of space outside instead of the crush of the ocean.

The long seconds turned to minutes, dragging on for another hour. Ford had soon tired of listening to the hum of the ship and now he was laid out on his bunk, flipping playing cards into his open bag. A messy pile was beginning to scatter around it on the floor. He let out a board sigh and spun a card which bounced off the far wall.

He then launched himself up from his bunk and walked over to the hatch. It was locked so he banged on it hard with his fist. After a few seconds it opened and three marines were standing in the corridor.

"What can we do you for sir?" asked the middle marine. Ford glanced over at the translation machine which had been set up beside the door and then turned back to them.

"I'm going crazy in here. Where's Blo…Major Thrace."

"Hold on," said the marine and walked around the corner leaving Ford standing with the remaining two, feeling awkward. Thankfully the marine returned quickly and motioned his head for him to follow. Ford pulled an excited grin and ran back into his quarters to grab his jacket before following the marine eagerly.

Part of him was annoyed at being kept waiting so long, but that feeling was suppressed by his excitement of starting his day. He had even spent most of the night trying to remember words that he had already learnt in their language. He believed he had mastered "hello" now in a number of variations.

The marine led him down a corridor which was slightly narrower than others and had many hatch doors leading off to unknown places, which Ford guessed might be living quarters. The marine stopped by a hatch and motioned with his arm to go inside. Ford was slightly apprehensive, not sure what was behind the door, and then he heard the squeal of a child.

He knocked politely and heard a harsh response, which could only have come from Blondie. Aware that the marine behind him was smirking, he opened the hatch and stepped carefully inside. The translator machine was hit with a barrage of sounds.

"No Seph, put it down," said Blondie, her voice rising above the squeals.

The toddler just looked at her and carried on, flinging his arms about. He looked as if he was holding some sort of thick glove. Blondie was wearing a spacesuit. She didn't greet Ford, she was too busy trying to stop her son running riot, whilst simultaneously trying to get her daughter dressed.

The little girl screamed and stomped her feet as soon as she was put down. Blondie had turned her attention to Joseph, taking the glove from his hand and lifting him up, balancing him on her hip. He struggled and whined, reaching out for the glove, determined to reach it.

"No, mom needs this or she'll turn into a lump of ice out in space." Ford had never seen Blondie looking flustered before. Her cheeks were red and she looked exhausted. Deciding to get out of the way he took a seat in one of the chairs that surrounded a little table. The quarters were small with two doors leading off. The main space consisted of a bed and a few items of furniture. The rest was scattered with clothing and worn toys.

The little boy struggled in his mother's arms and reached out for the glove as she tossed it onto the table, "No, no, I wanna," he wailed. The translator machine gave up trying to work out the rest of the garble the child came out with.

Blondie sighed and bounced him on her hip as he began to cry. The little girl, feeling left out started to do the same. Blondie looked ready to scream along with them.

Ford picked up an old looking teddy bear from the floor. He waved it at the little girl, "hey there, do you want to play with the bear?" He felt like an idiot, knowing that the child wouldn't understand him and then get even more confused when a computer spoke to her. But it seemed to work. She stopped screaming, staring at him with apparent curiosity as she sucked on one of her fingers.

"Don't stop," said Blondie as she continued to bounce the little boy who was starting to calm down.

"Er," replied Ford. He could see the little girl's face was going red again so he continued to bob the teddy bear up and down, making stupid noises as he did so.

The volume in the room finally decreased and Blondie looked calmer. Ford looked up at her for a second and then felt the teddy being pulled from his grasp. He let go and the girl cuddled it to her. She then looked up at him with a determined look before slapping him on the leg.

"Where dada?" she demanded.

Ford was too shocked to respond, he just looked at the little girl in bewilderment.

She slapped him again, her voice even more demanding. "Where dada!"

Ford let out a sharp exhale of breath as he saw the determined look on the toddlers face. "Hit first and ask questions later," he said and then looked up at Blondie. "Wonder where you learnt that?"

"Lena, don't hit our guests," said Blondie.

"Where Dada!" squealed the little girl again.

"They're not shy are they," observed Ford. Most other toddlers would be hiding behind their mother's leg right now, but this little girl was standing in front of him, stoic.

"They miss their father," explained Blondie. "And they won't let me forget it."

Ford smiled at the girl. "Do you want to know where your dad is?" he asked. She looked at him strangely, sucking on a finger, but when the translator machine sounded she nodded. Ford rummaged in his pocket until he found a miniature model of the Earth. "This is my home," he continued and showed the globe to her. "This is Earth."

"Err?" said Lena.

"That's right." He twisted the globe around and pointed to a spot. "Your dad is here, it's a place called England."

"Gla" said Lena and pointed to the globe.

Blondie looked at the globe with a frown, "out of all the places to crash, Racetrack finds the smallest island on the planet."

"It could've been a lot worse, believe me," observed Ford.

Lena grabbed at the globe, saying "dada."

Blondie shook her head, so Ford said, "this is too small for you sweetie, but I'll tell you what, I'll keep your dada safe in my pocket."

The girl seemed to accept this proposition. She turned to her mother and said "up."

"It's time for nursery," said Blondie. She leant down and struggled to lift her daughter whilst also holding her son. To the shock of Ford she then placed the girl in his lap.

Ford wasn't sure which was scarier, Blondie's watchful eye or the child grinning up at him, shouting "up." He stood up slowly, carefully lifting the child as if she was a fragile vase. She could sense his trepidation, making things more difficult by squirming slightly.

He then followed Blondie as she walked out of the quarters and down the corridor until they reached what was obviously the nursery. Blondie placed her son down and he went running off towards some other children. Ford did the same with the girl. She didn't run straight off but looked up at him.

"Dada?"

Ford patted his jacket, "safe in my pocket." She then ran off to join her brother. Ford turned to Blondie. "Did you tell them I was the evil man who took their parents away?" he asked half-heartedly.

"No," replied Blondie. "They just seem to sense things, scares the frak out of me."

"They're cute, and a chip off of the old block." Blondie frowned at him. "Sorry, what I mean is, they're a lot like you and their father," he explained.

"Hopefully the good parts," replied Blondie with a grin. "Come on, do you want to go out flying or what?"

She quickly walked off down the corridor. Ford jogged slightly to catch up and then fell into step with her. "Really?"

"Really. Not in my bird mind, but in a raptor."

Ford had already flown in one of those, but he was still excited. "Thank you. After you were so late this morning I thought I wouldn't get to do anything."

"I'm not about to let Kat be the best host. I've stuck her doing maintenance all day."

"That's unlucky for Biggy."

Blondie grinned, "it helps when you're put in charge of scheduling."

Ford nodded in understanding and said "thank you" again. He was now feeling really lucky to have Blondie as his escort, and regretted that he had not felt this way sooner.

As they walked down to the hangar deck, Ford tried to take everything in. The ship was amazing, and massive. He had been here before, but that didn't stop the excitement bubbling in his stomach.

"Have you got my bird ready Chief?" shouted out Blondie to a man dressed in orange overalls.

"Over here sir," replied the man, whose gaze was fixed on Ford rather than Blondie as he motioned over to the side of the hangar.

Looming in a space on the deck was one of the fighter jets, it was white and red and had obviously seen many battles. Scorch marks marred the underbelly and wings. Blondie stroked a hand across its side with a look of pride. Written just below the canopy was some lettering, which Ford guessed was Blondie's name.

"What's your callsign?" he asked. "If you have those, that is."

"Starbuck," said Blondie as she bent down to examine the hull. Ford smiled when he heard the call sign translated. "What?" she asked, standing upright with her hands on her hips.

"It's just an interesting name to use. It translates to the same name as a character in a famous book on Earth. And it's also a brand of coffee."

Blondie stared at him hard and then continued examining her ship. "Chief, did you sort out that dodgy landing strut?"

"Months ago sir."

Ford watched in awe as Blondie continued to look around the small ship and then ticked off a number of items on a clipboard. "I'm guessing that this only carries one?" he asked.

"Yep, but I wanted to show you what she can do. You'll be going out with Chuck and his ECO."

Ford looked over towards a familiar looking ship where two men in flight suits were standing. He followed them on board and took a seat at the front. The pilot looked at him uncertainly, but Ford didn't care, he kept his focus upon Blondie as she took a seat in the fighter jet and pulled on her helmet, closing up the canopy. Her ship was then slowly towed over to a large airlock.

The atmosphere in his ship seemed tense, the pilot appearing reluctant to make conversation so Ford kept his eyes ahead until their ship had been hauled into the airlock. It burst to life as soon as the lift had reached the top of the airlock and then they were out into space. He had seen it before, but it was still the most beautiful sight Ford had ever seen.

"I wish you could be here with me to see this Carrie," he whispered to himself, too quietly for the translator to work. He placed a hand gently against the glass. Swooping in close to the ship, came the fighter jet, pulling in just ahead of them.

"Frakking Starbuck," muttered the pilot next to him, jerking at the controls and making the ship rock.

"Not getting jumpy are you Chuck?" laughed Blondie over the comm.

"Are you trying to give me a frakking heart attack?" he asked.

"Just keeping you on your toes."

The pilot wasn't annoyed, he just shook his head and smiled as Blondie's ship danced in front of them. Ford had seen many birds in the sky before, but none that had been flown with such grace and beauty. He looked out at it with a look of awe on his face.

"You should see her in combat," said the pilot. "Thank the gods she's on our side."

The tension in the little ship had eased slightly. The pilot weaved about, showing Ford what it could do whilst Blondie darted in and out of their vision. He was having so much fun that two hours flew by too quickly for Ford and before he knew it they were landing back on the deck.

As he exited the ship he could see Blondie sitting at the top of the steps to her jet. She was looking at a clipboard, seeming to tick things off half-heartedly. She had a new glow about her, which was probably from wearing a close fitting helmet, but Ford also put down to the thrill of flying again. She saw him approach and grinned widely, putting her clipboard to the side.

"So what did you think?" she asked enthusiastically.

"That we have a lot of catching up to do back on Earth. Nothing we have there flies as well as your ship."

"This is just an old model, it was retired when the cylons first attacked us."

Ford nodded, she had told him something about this before in their debriefing. "I think you'd like some of our jets though, even if they can only fly in the atmosphere."

"Well maybe I'll get a shot one day." She stood up quickly and descended the steps, handing over her clipboard to a young looking woman at the bottom, who was dressed in orange overalls and looked obviously like a mechanic. She walked strongly across the deck, motioning for him to follow, a marine still keeping guard. They were half way down one corridor when she spoke to him again. "I'm gonna hit the head and then fill out some paperwork, the marine will have to show you back to your quarters for a while."

Ford nodded, "and then what?"

Blondie shrugged, "I dunno, think of something."

She then swaggered away leaving Ford behind, still in complete awe about what he had seen and done today.

_oooo_

Ford had been alone for a few hours when Swanson and Biggy returned to their quarters. He had spent the time updating his journal about their trip so far and was currently doing a series of press-ups on the floor. He had just broken out into a good sweat when the hatch door clanged open.

Coming to a stand, Ford grabbed his towel and wiped his face down. "Have a good day guys?" he asked.

"Absolutely frigging amazing!" said Swanson happily as he flopped down on his bed. "This ship is huge!"

"I hear you got to go out on a little flying tour," said Biggy turning to Ford.

Ford tried not to look smug, "I might have done."

"My guide, Kat, was spitting blood about it all day," replied Biggy. "She was stuck doing maintenance."

Ford laughed, "Blondie might have pulled a few strings."

"Yeah? Well according to Kat, Blondie isn't the hotshot she thinks she is."

"Sounds like someone is jealous." Ford got back down on the ground and started to do some sit-ups. "You didn't see her out there. Fuck me she could make that ship of hers dance. Also, the pilot I was with said that whenever Blondie's around, she's always the top gun. He also mentioned that quite a few pilots are jealous of that."

"Are we seriously playing "who has the biggest hotshot pilot supervisor?""

Swanson sat up from his bunk, "hey, at least you two have a woman to follow around. Rugby's great, but half of the time he had to keep disappearing to look after his kid. He didn't seem to want me anywhere near it."

"Perhaps because you refer to her as an _it_," said Biggy.

"Probably thinks you'll want to analyse the poor kid," added Ford.

Swanson went quiet, which they took to be an affirmation. Ford shook his head and continued with his sit-ups.

It was about three hours later when Blondie came to their quarters and took Ford out. This time he was first, leaving Swanson and Biggy looking on jealously. Langley hadn't come back at all.

She led him to the Mess room where they grabbed some food and sat down at one of the tables. The room reminded Ford of any other officer's Mess. It was now evening and many of the officers had gone off duty, which meant the drinking and smoking was in full swing. It was almost difficult to hear the translation machine, but Ford was starting to pick up a few words here and there.

"Does this remind you of home?" asked Blondie.

"Yeah," replied Ford. "Back in the day, I was usually that one," he added, pointing to one pilot who had his head tilted back whilst another poured drink through a large straw.

Blondie smiled, "but not anymore?"

"I left that life behind to move to the base you were held at. How about you?"

Blondie sighed, "not since the kiddies."

"Do you miss it?"

"Nope," she replied with a smile. "I did enough of that when I was younger to last two lifetimes. Back on Caprica I even got arrested for it a few times and thrown in hack."

"Why am I not surprised?"

She seemed to be thinking about something with a fond memory, "once I dragged Lee down with me, years before we were together. I still remember the look on his face when he woke up in a police cell the next morning."

Ford laughed, "good night?"

"Yeah," she replied with a warm smile, which had a hint of slight sadness about it which Ford thought was best not to enquire about. "Lee started a bar fight, it was hilarious, and we got away with it. Pity we couldn't go back to that bar again, it had a great view of the ocean and served the best ambrosia."

"I wish I could have seen your home planets, seen how you all used to live. I'm sorry about what happened."

Blondie seemed to think for a moment and then stood up from the table, motioning her head, "come on, I've got an idea."

She led him down the corridors until they reached a large room, which looked almost like a cinema with rows of seats cascading down in front of a large screen.

"Debriefing room?" asked Ford.

"That's next door, we use this for training mostly. Every viper is fitted with a camera so we can record their performances in combat and tell them what they're doing wrong." Ford took a seat at the front whilst Blondie walked over to a cupboard at the side. He was just about to ask her what she was up to when she said, "Before the attacks every ship in the fleet was sent a care package from fleet headquarters every month. It always contained some cheesy film about life in the Colonies, apparently it was meant to keep moral high." Blondie looked at Ford sceptically and then continued looking, digging deep into the cupboard. "Ah hah, these look right. They're not labelled, so it's pop luck. Hopefully none of it is Hotdog's porn collection. That kept us all entertained for about a month on the Galactica." Ford laughed as she stood up and placed one of the disks in the drive and then sat next to him.

A large logo appeared on the screen with some writing underneath. Blondie then pressed on the fast forward button and he could see a uniformed male moving at high speed as he seemed to be talking.

"These films always started with a really long and boring speech by someone high up in the fleet, giving us a few updates and telling us repeatedly how important we were for the protection of the Colonies," she explained. "We weren't much frakking good when the cylons penetrated our defence mainframe and launched our own missiles against us."

"No-one would have any chance, but yet this ship survived."

Blondie un-paused the film without answering. Uplifting music played as footage played, showing what looked to be different areas of a large city. It looked modern and clean, but the hustle and bustle was not that different to Earth.

"This is Caprica City," said Blondie.

They watched the entire film and then two others. Ford loved seeing the different places on each one, but it did feel morbid. All the people in these films were now dead. The fourth disk started, showing scenes from what looked to be a military base.

"Frak," said Blondie. "This is Delphi, I think I'm in this film. For some reason they decided it would be a great idea to make a film at the academy one month. They followed three nuggets through training."

"You?"

"No, I was one of their instructors."

Different sites around the base appeared and then he saw Blondie walking by what looked to be a simulator, wearing a space suit and with the same swagger she still walked with. Her face looked softer, younger, than it did now and she had short hair. She also appeared to be making a point of ignoring the camera. She was then speaking to a group of rookies, followed by different interviews with the rookies, talking about their experiences and hopes for the future.

Ford turned to Blondie to ask her a question, but then noticed that she was looking up at screen sadly, her eyes slightly glassy.

"Do you remember them?" he asked softly.

"Every one," replied Blondie. She pointed to one female who was speaking to the camera, "she was posted to the Galactica after qualifying second in her class. She died in the initial attacks. The cylons just switched off her viper, she had no chance, promising pilot too."

"If the cylons reach Earth, what will they do?"

"I really don't know."

"Could you protect us with this ship?"

Blondie turned to him with a serious expression on her face, "probably not, but we would die trying."

"You don't even know us and have no idea what the people of Earth are capable of. How could you honestly say you'd lay down your life for us when every instinct would be telling you to jump away?"

"The hope of Earth has kept us alive for the past few years," she replied. "I think we owe you one."

She then stopped the conversation by walking over and changing the disks. She obviously didn't feel too comfortable will such serious conversation. Ford could understand that, before he had moved over to the base he had left the thinking and politics to others. All he did was jump when he was told to.

Blondie returned back to the seat next to him and started playing the film. This one seemed different, the logo not appearing but instead a woman who looked to be a reporter started speaking.

"Frak, I didn't know someone had brought this over to the Beast," said Blondie. "This was a film made on the Galactica after the attacks," she added by way of explanation.

"Really? Awesome, I was wondering what that ship was like."

"It was filmed before we found the Beast."

Ford could see that Blondie was looking up at the screen with disgust as the reporter continued, speaking about some disaster that happened on a ship called the Gideon. "What's up, didn't you like the reporter nosing about on your ship?" he joked.

"Yeah, that was bad enough," replied Blondie and then pointed to the screen. "Finding out she was a toaster was even worse."

"She's one of them?" asked Ford shocked, the woman looked exactly human.

"No doubt she took all this footage and then sent it on to the others. The bitch tried to kill me nine months later."

The film was entertaining, showing the military bond that he was used to and missed greatly. He had raised an eyebrow upon seeing Blue Eyes dressed only in a slipping towel as Blondie smirked in the background.

"Is that Biggy's supervisor?" he asked as he watched a flailing woman being lifted onto a stretcher by Blondie and Blue Eyes.

"Yeah, she couldn't hack the pressure, started taking stims."

The footage continued and then something came up on the film that he did not expect. The cylon spoke about two pilots that had died shortly after filming, and then pictures of Blondie and Blue Eyes appeared.

Neither of them said a word and then the pictures faded to black, followed by footage of them during an obviously private moment. Blondie was giggling away as Blue Eyes tickled her relentlessly.

"Motherfrakker!" shouted out Blondie. "That model better pray to her singular God that we never meet again."

"I'm guessing you hadn't seen that end part?"

"No!"

The room was silent again for a few minutes before Ford felt brave enough to ask, "do you want to talk about it?"

"Not really," she replied quietly. Ford could see the pain on her face.

"You told me about being captured, I'm guessing that happened soon after this?"

"Lots of things did," said Blondie. She then smiled privately to herself, "our kids happened shortly after."

"Oh…right, so when you were captured…?"

Blondie turned to face him, "I had no idea until I woke up back in lifestation months later."

For a moment Ford wondered what that must have felt like, to wake up to realise something so huge. "The only thing that had changed during my captivity was my football team losing the Premiership League. I couldn't believe it, they were way ahead when I was taken." Blondie looked at him sceptically, "I'm serious, I was heartbroken. The people of the Earth take their sport very seriously."

Blondie then burst out laughing, "you're really odd, you know that?"

"Carrie liked to remind me from time to time."

Blondie jumped up from her seat and motioned her head, "come on, we can catch a quick triad game in the Mess. Someone might even let you have some of their ambrosia."

Ford eagerly followed his guide. He had only known Blondie for a short time, but he already knew that apart from the strong fighter she appeared to be on the outside, she possessed a heart of vulnerabilities. He could read it in her eyes as he broke through her barriers. He felt that for some reason, she trusted him now, respected him as a brother-at-arms. He also felt that on this ship, with these people, was where he belonged.


	57. Destiny Part 2

Chapter 56

Kara listened to the soft hum of the ship as she lay in her bed, entwined with Lee who was sleeping soundly. Her head rested on his chest, rising and falling as he breathed slowly. There was nowhere else that felt safer, securer, than when she was curled up next to Lee. Not even insomnia could remove the warm smile that she held.

"I love you," she whispered, a sentiment that was so easy to say when he was asleep, but no matter how true the statement was, difficult to say to his open and gazing face.

Gently she stroked the top of her foot up his strong calf making him stir slightly. For hours that night they had made love, followed by an hour of rampant frakking, to make up for lost time. It was tempting to slide on top of him now, to wake him up with a soft kiss, but then she heard a gurgle coming from the radio next to the bed.

As carefully as she could, Kara rolled herself out of the bed and walked into the adjoining room. Lena was sleeping soundly but Joseph had awoken and was sitting up in his cot, holding on to the bars. He looked up at his mother as she approached and held his hands up to her.

"Hey there," said Kara with a smile and picked him up onto her hip. Joseph snuggled immediately into her shoulder and went quiet, sucking onto his thumb. "Just wanted me huh?"

Kara sat down on the small sofa inside the twins' room and settled back into the cushions. Joseph would undoubtedly wake up if she left him in his cot, so it was pointless making the attempt. She could feel his soft breath against her neck, and she stroked his back gently.

Every night when she finally fell asleep, she dreamt of the same things. Far away stars surrounding the nebula. Every so often she would see two vipers flying side by side in the swirling clouds of gas, just drifting together in tandem. The stars then streamed past, the nebula getting smaller and smaller, past a supernova and a brightly shining comet. And then she could see it...

Kara awoke with a start, unaware that she had even fallen asleep, Joseph stirring in her arms as she flung her head up from the cushions.

"Frak," she muttered, readjusting Joseph on her shoulder as he let out a small gurgle.

She had dreamt of stars and a faraway planet, its blue oceans glistening under a blanket of clouds. The skin on her forehead was clammy and she realised that she was shaking slightly, but then she had seen things clearly in the dream.

Stroking back the hair on Joseph's head she said, "I think your mom has finally gone completely crazy."

In one smooth movement Kara stood up from the sofa and went to place Joseph back in his crib, but when he began to stir she thought better of it. Instead she went into the main room and, holding onto him with one arm, she pulled on some slacks and then as quietly as she could, left the quarters.

The corridors at this time of night were dimly lit and nobody was milling about. The only people who were on duty were at their posts. Kara didn't stop until she reached her destination, running on automatic, striding ahead on pure instinct as if she was being driven by some eternal force.

Rounding a corner, Kara paused outside a storage locker, looked around to make sure no-one else was around, and then pushed open the door. Joseph was now awake and looking up at his mother expectantly.

"I've spent some fun hours in this room with your father kiddo," said Kara as she began to search, glad that he couldn't understand her yet. "If I remember, what I'm looking for is in one of these boxes. Lee's ass fell through it one time."

Joseph reached out as Kara fully opened a broken box and stowed a few items in her pockets. "Ma...ma," he said with a grin, his bright blue eyes staring up at her.

"Breaking the rules with your mom already kiddo? You know how to make me proud." She placed a kiss to his head and then peeked out of the storage locker before exiting. In a sort of trance she made her way back to their quarters, thoughts of stars and comets in her mind.

_oooo_

Lee reached out instinctively in his half-slumbered state, waking immediately when all he found was an empty bed next to him. The sheets on the bed clung to his naked body, reminding him fondly of the night before when their bodies had intertwined perfectly. Lee frowned at the empty bed, drifting his sleepy eyes around the empty room. Slipping out of bed, he pulled on his slacks and entered the adjoining bedroom.

"Kara...what?" he yawned, running a hand through his hair.

"Not right now Lee," replied Kara, dropping a paintbrush into a pot.

Joseph was sitting up in his cot, watching in wonder at his mother busy at work. There was paint everywhere and a mural developing on the wall.

"Kara its 0500 hours," said Lee looking at the clock on the wall. "Isn't it a bit earlier for decorating?"

"I said, not right now Lee," replied Kara as she crouched down and dipped another brush into a pot of bright yellow paint. "I've got to get this done."

"Sure, fine," replied Lee, "'cause it's completely normal to start painting the kids' bedroom in the middle of the night."

Kara paused, stepping back and looking up at the mural. "This is more than just a bit of interior design Lee." She moved her open hand down the wall, barely a centimetre away as if she was trying to stroke it, and then added a yellow dash in the middle.

Joseph pointed at the mural and said "Sta."

"I think you're right kiddo," replied Kara.

Lee frowned, "is this some sort of map?"

"I don't know, I just dreamt about it. It feels familiar, like I've been there before."

"Any idea where _there _is?" asked Lee, lifting Joseph out of his crib.

Kara looked at him seriously, "nope, do you think Fisk will mind?" She held his gaze for a few moments and then grinned, making Lee laugh.

"He might, especially when he has to keep coming down here to look for directions."

Kara shrugged, "it might make him lose a few pounds though."

Lee laughed again, "Perhaps that's how we should present it to him? A map to Earth _and_ an exercise regime."

Kara dropped her paint brush into a pot and then sultrily walked up to Lee. "Still think I'm crazy?" she asked.

"Certifiable."

Kara reached up a finger and streaked red paint down Lee's nose, followed by a loud guffaw at the look of surprise on his face. Lee scrunched up his face, straining not to laugh.

"Shower?" he suggested, smudging the paint with his hand.

Kara turned back to the mural, picking her paintbrush back up. "I have to finish this first," she replied.

Lee didn't respond, and began walking to the small bathroom. He turned briefly to frown with concern as he watched his wife start painting again. Sensing him gaze, Kara turned to him and smiled.

"I'll follow with Lena in a minute," she said, holding his gaze for a few moments before turning back to the mural.

_oooo_

For Kara it seemed that she had been staring at the same star charts forever. She cricked her neck, the sleeves of her flightsuit tied around her waist. She pushed a few stray strands of hair that had fallen from its ponytail, behind her ears.

The CIC was busy as normal with various crew members manning their posts, Fisk stood beneath the dradis monitor. Kara chanced a quick glare at him when he wasn't looking, hating the fact that she was still on emergency duties only, meaning she had to sweat her ass off in her flightsuit and not make up for it with the joy of actually getting to sit in her viper.

She glanced away as he looked over, gripping onto her pencil as he walked over.

"Still trying to find a route?" he asked.

Kara gripped the pencil harder, "obviously..._sir_."

"Remember who you're talking to _Major_."

"As if I could forget that sir," replied Kara, laying down her pencil. She took a deep breath to quell her rising anger and then continued. "I'm not going to find the path to Earth by just staring at these charts all day."

"I hoped that when we reached the nebula you would know."

Privately Kara had hoped the same thing when they finally reached it, but nothing had happened. She had dreamt constantly of the nebula, but nothing had become clearer until this morning. She would be damned if she was going to tell Fisk straight away about her mural. If she was going to convince the man that she wasn't crazy, then keeping the mural a secret for now was for the best. "What, did you expect me to just start quoting directions as soon as we jumped?"

"I'd hoped for something more than just seeing you staring at star charts like before."

Kara glared at his retreating back as he walked away. She could feel that he too was glaring, fed up with the lack of progress. She picked up the pencil, one quick throw and she knew she'd be able to hit him squarely to the back of his head.

It was the shout that came from Shaw that broke through her irritation. Kara glanced over at her, her mind having failed to process what had actually been said. The way she was glancing up at the dradis monitor answered. Two large red blips had appeared, and they were close.

Throwing down her pencil Kara pushed back from the consol and ran towards the exit.

As she went she heard Fisk's booming voice, "where the frak did they come from? Action stations, set condition one throughout the ship. Thrace..." but then he stopped as he realised she was already gone.

Kara heard the claxons blaring mere seconds after she left the CIC. Shaw's voice then came over the comm, "action stations, actions stations, set condition one throughout the ship."

And then the lights in the corridor extinguished, blanketing everything in darkness. Kara paused, leaning up against the wall. The hum of the ship had halted and all that she could hear was the noise coming from her deep breaths. And then she could hear the throb of the ship as it powered back up, the lights coming back on.

Kara paused, her eyes looking up to the lights as they flickered slightly. Something wasn't right, the ship was not meant to power down like that. She had never been on board a Battlestar that had done this. And then she felt a shudder, a deep rumble through the walls of the ship. They had been hit. The cylons were on top of them and she had no idea if they were capable of jumping away. Pushing away from the wall, she continued to run down the corridor at full pelt.

The hangar deck was in chaos when she arrived, with deckhands rushing about everywhere. Vipers were already being pushed into the launch tubes, many had already gone out.

She saw her viper waiting ahead, ready with the steps pushed up to the cockpit, her helmet at the top.

"Chief, get my bird out into the black now!" she yelled as she sped down the steep stairs onto the deck.

"She's all set to go Major."

Kara wasted no time, pulling herself up into the cockpit as the deckhands began to tow her to the launch tubes.

"What the frak is going on Chief?"

"Beats me sir, we were getting the first vipers out when we were plunged into darkness. Apollo was stuck in the tube until we could boot everything back up."

"Is he out there now?" asked Kara as she pulled on her helmet.

"He is now sir, you're going to be the last to the dance."

"Excellent, I like playing catch up."

"Good hunting sir."

Kara pushed back the cockpit canopy, raising a thumb to say she was ready. She was hungry to get out into the fray. It seemed to take the deckhands a frustratingly long time to tow the viper towards the launch tubes. "Come on!" she yelled.

Finally she was towed into the claustrophobic tunnel. She felt the ship lurch as she was enclosed inside. They had been hit again.

"Come on!" she yelled again over the comm.

"Hang on sir, we're still having trouble with our systems," replied a voice.

Kara thumped her head back against the cockpit seat in frustration and then finally her ship rumbled to life. She raised her thumb up and then the g-forces hit, throwing her out into the black. The cylons were everywhere. Kara pulled hard on her stick to avoid a collision with a raider that was directly in front on her as she was expelled from the launch tube.

"Frak," she exclaimed as the raider glanced off her undercarriage, making her spin out of control. The raider collided with the side of the Pegasus.

As she brought her viper under control, another raider exploded in front of her.

"Looking a bit burnt up there Starbuck," shouting Kat over the comm, zooming through the wreckage of the raider with a whoop.

"Nice shooting Kat," replied Kara, getting her bearings in check. She twisted her viper in the air, shooting down the nearest raiders that came anywhere near her gun sights. "But I'm better," she whispered to herself as she took out another raider.

The comm system was alive with chatter, each pilot and the CIC shouting out updates. It was almost impossible to distinguish each individual voice. Kara pushed the noises away, focusing her sights forward. Nothing was going to stand in her way.

_oooo_

The hangar deck had erupted into chaos when the claxons had sounded. Lee had been checking over his viper at the time, getting ready for his CAP. Immediately he had thrown down his clipboard and had jumped up into the cockpit. Within seconds he was being towed into the launch tube, the hangar doors closing behind him, and then everything went black. The viper, which had been rumbling to life, went dead.

He had never felt so claustrophobic in his life until that moment. It was so dark that he couldn't even see the visor of his helmet. And then the booth next to him sprung to life and then the ship rocked.

"Everything alright Major?" asked a voice over the comm.

"Just get me the frak out there."

At last his viper sprung to life and he was thrown out into the battle. He was alone, with just the guns on his viper and the firing solution from the Pegasus. Raiders were bearing down on his position. He flipped his viper over, taking out the nearest one.

Shaw's voice came over the comm, "Apollo, Pegasus, we have five raiders going after the Tylium ship."

"Copy that Pegasus," he replied, flipping his viper he stayed close to the hull of the Pegasus until he could see the Tylium ship ahead. It was taking heavy hits from raiders that had swarmed around it.

Lee took out the first two with ease, twisting out of the way as shots from a third raider came from behind.

"Apollo, you have a raider on your six," said Showboat over the comm.

"I'm well aware of that" replied Lee, relieved that he was no longer alone. He saw the explosion from behind him. "Thanks Showboat," he said, setting his sights on the next raider.

The traffic over the comm system became more and more jumbled as more vipers were launched and then at last he could hear the sound of Kara's voice. Knowing she was fighting out here too made him feel somewhat safer.

The dark skies were alight with various explosions around him. They had destroyed numerous raiders, but still they kept coming. The Baseship was within firing distance, the Pegasus' battery only just able to hold them off. The shells of various destroyed vipers were scattered about, creating a debris field.

"Pegasus, Apollo, we need to get out of her now!" yelled Lee. "We can't hold them off for much longer."

He didn't get a response immediately.

"Come on Pegasus!" he shouted as a raider glanced a blow across his wing making him wince. "We're getting frakked hard out here." There was a raider in front of him, to the side and behind. He was surrounded. He spun his viper to the side to avoid the spray of bullets, feeling the shudder as something hit.

Another viper zoomed past in the opposite direction, seemingly at almost supersonic speed, followed by an explosion. Lee forced his viper over, end on end, seeing the same viper taking down another raider, the wreckage bouncing off the hull.

"Thought you could use some help Apollo!"

Kara's voice never failed to make Lee smile, even when they were flying for their survival.

More explosions surrounded him, with cries of panic and screams of death coming over the comm. A pull of dread hit Lee's stomach. They were dying one by one. When they had gone the Pegasus would be next.

And then the life line came as Shaw's voice came over on the comm. "Tylium ship jumping away, all birds come on home, all birds come on home."

Stinger's voice was next, "Well what are you all waiting for, a written invitation? Everyone back to the beast immediately, emergency landings."

Lee desperately tried to distinguish Kara's voice over the comm and looked out for her as he headed for the deck. He spun his viper to dodge the bullets from another raider and came in hot, not caring that it would take the Chief days to beat the landing gear back into alignment. His head jerked back sharply as he hit the deck and then he felt the tug of the FTL drive kicking in.

There was silence on the deck. Lee looked around the landing pod, trying to find Kara. All of the vipers looked the same, they were blackened, scorched and covered in cylon blood. He was also aware that too few vipers had managed to land.

He was impatient to get towed back into the hangar, restless to see Kara again. All of the vipers were towed in as quickly as possible, scattered erratically across the deck. Lee pushed back his canopy, removing his helmet. His hair and forehead were sodden with sweat. His viper, like all of the others was covered in damage. Two large scorch marks marred the wing from where he had been hit.

Everyone looked shell shocked, looking around at each other to see who had made it. And then Lee saw the last viper being towed in. He should have known that Kara would be the last to land. Her bird was covered in the most blood, with blackened scorch marks along the side.

Lee was walking over when she stood up in the cockpit. Like the others, her hair was damp, half falling out of his pony tail.

"What the frak did you do to your ship Major?" asked Laird, crouching down and looking at the belly of Kara's viper.

Kara shrugged, "toaster hit me." She descended the steps, ignoring the damage and looking straight at Lee. He embraced her tightly.

"Thanks for saving my ass again," he whispered into her hair.

"You're ass belongs to me Adama, remember?" she whispered back.

Lee pulled back and looked into Kara's eyes, but she looked suddenly pained. "You okay?"

"Just a headache," she replied.

"Hit the deck a little too hard?"

"No, that was you nearly landing nose first." She rubbed a hand to her forehead, but then seemed to shake away the pain.

They looked about the deck, wondering how many pilots they had lost. In the chaos no-one was sure who had made it. It was therefore an agonising task of checking off each pilot and seeing who was missing. Putting aside their need to be with each other, Kara and Lee helped the deckhands tow their vipers aside and assess the damage.

They had lost 9 pilots, 7 vipers and a raptor. There were minor casualties across the ship also, but no deaths. The ship itself was not breached but was probably in need of a serious paint job. Emotionally, everyone was exhausted.

Hours later Lee lay under his viper with various tools resting on top of his chest, trying to repair the damage that had been caused to the underbelly. Laird had spent hours trying to beat the landing gear back into place. Next to his viper was Kara's, which looked just as distressed.

"Did you even try and land gently?" asked Laird as he continued to hammer at the landing struts.

"Wasn't really thinking about it at the time to be honest," replied Lee as he tightened a cog with his spanner. "I just wanted to get to the deck."

"Well you certainly did that."

A loud noise of metal hitting metal drew his attention away from the Chief. Kara was smacking the underside of her viper.

"Kara?" asked Lee.

She smacked it a few more times before tossing aside her spanner in frustration, rubbing her fingers to her temples. Lee rolled out from under his viper and crouched down beside her.

"You still have a headache?"

She didn't answer, continuing to rub her temples in obvious pain.

"Kara?"

"The pain started as soon as we finished jumping," she said at last.

"You're just tired from lack of sleep."

"No," she replied, a look of dawning appearing on her face. "We've jumped the wrong way."

Without another word Kara pushed herself out from under her viper and strode off with purpose across the deck. Lee had given up a long time ago trying to understand his wife, it was an impossible task. Dutifully he followed after her.

_oooo_

Kara had lost count of the number of times Fisk had stared at her with a look of disbelief. Lee stood by her side, his arms folded in front of his chest, frowning.

"Let me get this straight..." began Fisk in way he had so many times before, so Kara knew what was coming.

"You gave me one job _sir_, to find a path to Earth. Reading maps over and over again is not going to help that." Kara shoved the charts away across the consol. "What I do know is that we're going the wrong the way, don't ask me how, but it's better than having nothing. Jumping again won't do us any harm."

Fisk clicked his jaw, "and where do you suppose we jump to?"

Lee stepped in, shifting through the star charts. He pointed to a sector, "well, we jumped here, if we stay on this course then we would end up in this sector." Kara looked confused as he poured through further start charts. She had never excelled at reading them back at the academy. "What if we head towards this sector instead?"

Fisk looked down at the charts and sighed, "I'm going to have some strong words with Admiral Adama when we get back to New Caprica, _if _we ever get back. I've started a separate ship's log just for you two." He rubbed his temples, "we'll start plotting a jump, you two get down to the hangar and continue helping with the clean up." He lowered his voice, "services for the dead will begin at 0900 hours tomorrow."

Kara felt a pang of guilt in her gut. She had so been so intent upon the mission that she had forgotten about the battle they had just faced.

"Frakking Fisk," she muttered as soon as they had left the CIC. She leant up against the wall, leaning her head back.

"If you were in his position would you believe us?" asked Lee. "One day he won't back down."

Kara muttered under her breath and they began to walk down the corridors, back down to the hangar deck to continue the clean up.

Two hours later and Lee was underneath his viper, Kara sitting on the steps to hers when Shaw's voice sounded over the comm. They were warned to brace for an imminent jump.

Kara looked over at Lee as the ship shrunk in on itself and then jumped. The pressure in her head eased as soon as the jump had finished. Closing her eyes she breathed a sigh of relief, opening them to see Lee looking up at her with his bright blue eyes. She nodded her head. He was just getting up to speak to her when Shaw's voice came out over the comm again.

"Majors Thrace and Adama report to the CIC immediately, Majors Thrace and Adama report to the CIC immediately."

Kara pushed herself up and off the steps to the viper. Lee joined her as she strode across the deck and started to walk towards the CIC.

"The pain's gone down hasn't it?" he asked.

"Something's different," replied Kara. "Don't ask me to try and explain it 'cause I can't."

Lee held up his hands in defeat, "Kara, I've come to accept sudden comas, artwork in the middle of the night... kinda makes a person have faith that there's another power out there turning the wheels."

"Wow Lee, never thought I'd hear you accept that the Gods exist."

"I never said that, what I meant is that there must be something out there."

Kara placed a hand to his arm, "that's enough."

"I'll always believe in you."

"Aw, that's sweet Lee, really."

They both laughed as they walked down the halls of the ship. Kara felt easier, she knew know that they were heading the right way, who knew what lay beyond, but somewhere in front of them was Earth.


End file.
